GIFT  OF 
Ella  Sterling  Mighels 


FAIRY  TALES 


FROM  THE 


AR    NORTH. 


F      P.  C.  ASBJQRNSEN, 


•  ranslated  f rom  the  Norwe^an  by 

H.  L.  BE^EKSTAD. 


WITH       INETY-FIVE  ILLUSTRATIONS, 


A.   L.  BURT  COMPANY, 
PUBLISH  RRS,  NEW  YORK. 


GIFT  Oft 


~  £3 


TRANSLATOR'S  NOTE. 


SLOWLY  but  surely  the  name  of  Asbjornsen  has 
been  gaining  ground  in  popularity  as  one  of  the 
,iost  fascinating  and  delightful  writers  of  Fairy 
Tales,  not  only  among  the  young  folks  in  this 
country,  but  also  among  adult  readers  and  students 
of  Folk  Lore.  Asbjornsen  was  first  introduced  to 
the  English  public  through  the  late  Sir  George 
Dasent's  translations,  published  in  1858  and  1874. 
In  1881  appeared  my  translation  of  a  selection  of 
his  Norske  Folke-Eventyr  (Norwegian  Folk  and 
Fairy  Tales),  and  his  Huldre-Eventyr  (Tales  and 
Legends  about  the  wood-fairy  and  otb^  super 
natural  beings),  with  the  original  illustra  which 
a  number  of  Norwegian  artists,  all  friends  and 
admirers  of  the  genial  author,  had  for  some  time 
been  preparing  for  the  first  illustrated  edition  of  his 
Tales.  The  English  edition  was  published  under 
the  title  of  "  Round  the  Yule  Log,"  and  met  with  a 
most  favorable  reception  both  in  this  country  and 
in  America. 

A  second  volume,  containing  a  further  selection 
of  his  most  popular  Tales,  with  illustrations  by  the 
well-known  Norwegian  artists,  E.  Werensl  Id,  T. 


iv  TRANSLATOR'S  NOTE. 

Kittelsen  and  O.  Binding,  was  in  course  of  publica 
tion  when,  in  1885,  death  overtook  the  author,  and 
Norway  lost  one  of  her  most  celebrated  sons*  But 
the  arrangements  for  the  publication  of  this  new 
volume  of  the  illustrated  edition  were  so  far 
advanced  that  the  final  part  was  able  to  appear 
about  two  years  after  Asbjornsen's  death.  It  is 
these  illustrations  which  appear  in  the  pages  of  the 
present  English  edition  of  the  new  selection  of  his 
Tales.  With  regard  to  the  translation,  I  have  in 
this,  as  in  my  former  volume,  "  Round  the  Yule 
Log,"  attempted  to  retain  as  far  as  possible  the 
racy,  colloquial  flavor  of  the  original, 

II.  L0  B. 
LONDON,  September^  1897. 


\ 


"  Have  I  won  the  hundred  dollars  now? "  asked  Gudbraud.— -Page  154. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGK 

THE  RAM  AND  THE  PIG  WHO  WENT  INTO  THE  WOODS  TO 

LIVE  BY  THEMSELVES 1 

THE  GOLDEN  BIRD 8 

THE  Fox  AS  HERDSBOY 21 

ASHIEPATTLE,  WHO  ATE  WITH  THE  TROLL  FOR  A  WAGER.  .  23 

THE  QUERN  AT  THE  BOTTOM  OF  THE  SEA 27 

LITTLE  BUTTERKIN , ....  34 

THE  CONTRARY  WOMAN 40 

THE  WOODPECKER. 44 

THE  MAN'S  DAUGHTER  AND  THE  WOMAN'S  DAUGHTER 40 

THE  HARE  WHO  HAD  BEEN  MARRIED 58 

THE  SQUIRE'S  BRIDE 60 

ALL  WOMEN  ARE  ALIKE 67 

>  ONE'S  OWN  CHILDREN  ARE  ALWAYS  THE  PRETTIEST 74 

OLD  FATHER  BRUIN  IN  THE  WOLF  PIT 76 

*  THE  DOLL  IN  THE  GRASS 79 

THE  HEN  WHO  WENT  TO  DOVREFJELD  TO  SAVE  THE  WORLD  83 

SQUIRE  PETER 87 

BIRD  DAUNTLESS 5 

THE  TOWN  MOUPE  AND  THE  COUHTTRY  MOUSE ill 

iBoHii.  BIuuA't  CABTJ  , 117 

' 


VI  qONTENTS. 

PAGE 

WELL  DONE,  ILL  PAID 132 

ASHIEPATTLE  AND  HIS  GOODLY  CREW. 137 

GUDBRAND  ON  THE  HILLSIDE 149 

THE  TWELVE  WILD  DUCKS 155 

THE  BEAR  AND  THE  Fox : 

I.  SLIP  PINE-ROOT,  GRIP  FOX-FOOT 165 

II.  THE  BEAR  AND  THE  Fox  MAKE  A  WAGER 166 

III.  THE  BEAR  AND  THE  Fox  GO  INTO  PARTNERSHIP.  . .  168 

IV.  REYNARD  WANTS  TO  TASTE  HORSEFLESH 169 

THE  COCK  WHO  FELL  INTO  THE  BREWING  VAT 172 

THE  COCK  AND  THE  Fox 178 

THE  THREE  PRINCESSES  IN  THE  BLUE  MOUNTAIN 181 

THE  WORLD'S  REWARD   208 

THE  COMPANION..  .213 


NANNY  WHO  WOULDN'T  GO  HOME  TO  SUPPER 232 

THE  LAD  WITH  THE  BEER  KEG 241 

LITTLE  FRED  AND  HIS  FIDDLE 248 

THE  STOREHOUSE  KEY  IN  THE  DISTAFF „ . .  257 

THE  LAD  WHO  WENT  WOOING  THE  DAUGHTER  OF  OLD 
MOTHER  CORNER 260 

THE  PRINCESS  WHOM  NOBODY  COULD  SILENCE 269 

FARMER  WEATHERBEARD.  .  .  274 


THE  RAM 
AND  THE 
PIG  WHO 
WENT 
INTO  THE 
WOODS 
TO  LIVE 
BY 
THEMSELVES. 

THERE  was  once  upon 
a  time  a  ram,  who  was  , 
being  fattened   up  for 
killing.     He  had  there 
fore  plenty  to  eat,  and 
he  soon  became  round  - 
and    fat  \vith    all    the 
good    things    he    got. 


yAltlY'  TAuKS   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

One  day  the  dairymaid  came,  and  gave  him  some 
more  food. 

"  You  must  eat,  ram,"  she  said ;  "  you'll  not  be 
long  here  now,  for  to-morrow  we  are  going  to  kill 
you." 

"  There's  an  old  saying,  that  no  one  should  sneer 
at  old  women's  advice,  and  that  advice  and  physic 
can  be  had  for  everything  except  death,"  thought 
the  ram  to  himself ;  u  but  perhaps  I  might  manage 
to  escape  it  this  time."' 

And  so  he  went  on  eating  till  he  was  full,  and 
when  he  was  quite  satisfied  he  ran  his  horns  against 
the  door,  burst  it  open,  and  set  off  to  the  neighbor 
ing  farm.  There  he  made  straight  for  the  pigsty, 
to  look  for  a  pig  with  whom  he  had  struck  up  an 
acquaintance  on  the  common,  since  when  they  had 
always  been  good  friends  and  got  on  well  together. 

"Good-day,  and  thanks  for  your  kindness  last 
time  we  met,"  said  the  ram  to  the  pig. 

"  Good-day,  and  thanks  to  you,"  said  the  pig. 

"  Do  you  know  why  they  make  you  so  comfort 
able,  and  why  they  feed  you  and  look  after  you  so 
well  ?"  said  the  ram. 

"  No,"  said  the  pig. 

"  There  are  many  mouths  to  feed  on  this  farm, 
you  must  know,"  said  the  ram ;  "  they  are  going  to 
kill  you  and  eat  you." 

"Are  they?"  said  the  pig.  "Well,  much  good 
may  it  do  them !" 

"  If  you  are  of  the  same  mind  as  I,  we  will  go 
into  the  woods  and  build  a  house  and  live  by  our- 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.  3 

selves ;  there  is  nothing  like  having  a  home  of  your 
own,  you  know/'  said  the  ram. 

Yes,  the  pig  was  quite  willing.  "  It's  nice  to  be 
in  fine  company,"  said  he,  and  off  they  started. 

When  they  had  got  a  bit  on  the  way  they  met  a 
^oose. 

"  Good-day,  my  good  people,  and  thanks  for  your 
kindness  last  time  we  met,"  said  the  goose.  "  Where 
are  you  off  to  ?" 

"  Good-day,  and  thanks  to  you,"  said  the  ram. 
"  We  had  it  altogether  too  comfortable  at  our  place, 
so  we  are  off  to  the  woods  to  live  by  ourselves.  In 
your  own  house  you  are  your  own  master,  you 
know,"  said  he. 

"  Well,  I'm  very  comfortable  where  I  am,"  said 
the  goose ;  "  but  why  shouldn't  I  join  you  ?  Good 
company  makes  the  day  shorter,"  said  she. 

"  But  neither  hut  nor  house  can  be  built  by  gab 
bling  and  quacking,"  said  the  pig.  "  What  do  you 
think  you  can  do  ?" 

"  Good  counsel  and  skill  may  do  as  much  as  a 
giant's  will,"  said  the  goose.  "  I  can  pluck  moss 
and  stuff  it  into  the  crevices,  so  that  the  house  will 
be  warm  and  comfortable." 

Well,  she  might  come  with  them,  thought  the 
pig,  for  he  liked  the  place  to  be  warm  and  cozy. 

When  they  had  gone  a  bit  on  the  way — the  goose 
was  not  getting  along  very  fast — they  met  a  hare, 
who  came  scampering  out  of  the  wood. 

"  Good-day,  my  good  people,  and  thanks  for  your 
kindness  the  last  time  we  met,"  said  the  hare. 
"  How  far  are  you  going  to-day  ?"  said  he0 


4     FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"Good-day,  and  thanks  to  you,"  said  the  ram; 
"  we  had  it  altogether  too  comfortable  at  our  place, 
so  we  are  off  to  the  woods  to  build  a  house  and  live 
by  ourselves.  When  you  have  tried  both  East  and 
West,  you'll  find  that  a  home  of  your  own  is  after 
all  the  best,"  said  he. 

"  Well,  I  have,  of  course,  a  home  in  every  bush," 
said  the  hare ;  "  but  I  have  often  said  to  myself  in 
the  winter  that  if  I  lived  till  the  summer  I  would 
build  a  house,  so  I  have  a  good  mind  to  go  with 
you  and  build  one  after  all,"  said  he. 

"  Well,  if  the  worst  comes  to  the  worst,  we  might 
take  you  with  us  to  frighten  the  dogs  away,"  said 
the  pig,  "  for  you  couldn't  help  us  to  build  the  house, 
I  should  say." 

"  There  is  always  something  for  willing  hands  to 
do  in  this  world,"  said  the  hare.  "I  have  teeth  to 
gnaw  pegs  with,  and  I  have  paws  to  knock  them 
into  the  walls,  so  I'll  do  very  well  far  a  carpenter  ? 
for  'good  tools  make  good  work,'  as  the  man  said, 
when  he  skinned  his  mare  with  an  auger,"  said  the 
hare. 

Well,  he  might  come  with  them  and  help  to  build 
the  house ;  there  could  be  no  harm  in  that. 

When  they  had  got  a  bit  further  on  the  way 
they  met  a  cock. 

"  Good-day,  my  good  people,  and  thanks  for  your 
kindness  last  time  we  met,"  said  the  cock ;  "  where 
are  you  all  going  to-day  ?"  he  said. 

"Good-day  and  thanks  to  you,"  said  the  ram; 
"  we  had  it  altogether  too  comfortable  at  our  place. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.  5 

so  we  are  off  to  the  woods  to  build  a  house  and  live 
by  ourselves.  '  For  unless  at  home  you  bake,  you'll 
lose  both  fuel  and  cake,' "  said  he. 

"  Well,  I  am  comfortable  enough,  where  I  am," 
said  the  cock,  "  but  it's  better  to  have  your  own 
roost  than  to  sit  on  a  stranger's  perch  and  crow ; 
and  that  cock  is  best  off  who  has  a  home  of  his 
own,"  said  he.  "  If  I  could  join  such  fine  company 
as  yours,  I  too  would  like  to  go  to  the  woods  and 
build  a  house." 

"  Well,  flapping  and  crowing  is  all  very  well  for 
noise,  but  it  won't  cut  joists,"  said  the  pig.  "  You 
can't  help  us  to  build  a  house,"  he  said. 

"  It  is  not  well  to  live  in  a  house  where  there  is 
neither  dog  nor  cock,"  said  the  cock ;  "  I  am  early 
to  rise  and  early  to  crow." 

"Yes,  'early  to  rise  makes  one  wealthy  and 
wise,'  so  let  him  come  with  us  !"  said  the  pig.  He 
was  always  the  heaviest  sleeper.  "  Sleep  is  a  big 
thief,  and  steals  half  one's  life,"  he  said. 

So  they  all  set  off  to  the  woods  and  built  the 
house.  The  pig  felled  the  trees  and  the  ram  dragged 
them  home ;  the  hare  was  the  carpenter,  and  gnawed 
pegs  and  hammered  them  into  walls  and  roof ;  the 
goose  plucked  moss  and  stuffed  it  into  the  crev 
ices  between  the  logs;  the  cock  crew  and  took 
care  that  they  did  not  oversleep  themselves  in  the 
mornings,  and  when  the  house  was  ready  and  the 
roof  covered  with  birch-bark  and  thatched  with 
turf,  they  could  at  least  live  by  themselves,  and 
they  were  all  both  happy  and  contented. 


6    FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"  It's  pleasant  to  travel  both  East  and  West,  but 
home  is,  after  all,  the  best,"  said  the  ram. 

But  a  bit  further  into  the  wood  two  wolves  had 
their  lair,  and  when  they  saw  that  a  new  house 
had  been  built  hard  by  they  wanted  to  know  what 
sort  of  folks  they  had  got  for  neighbors.  For  they 
thought,  "  a  good  neighbor  is  better  than  a  brother 
in  a  foreign  land,  and  it  is  better  to  live  among 
good  neighbors  than  to  be  known  far  and  wide." 

So  one  of  them  made  it  his  business  to  call  there 
and  ask  for  a  light  for  his  pipe.  The  moment  he 
came  inside  the  door  the  ram  rushed  at  him,  and 
gave  him  such  a  butt  with  his  horns  that  the  wolf 
fell  on  his  head  into  the  hearth ;  the  pig  snapped 
and  bit,  the  goose  nipped  and  pecked,  the  cock  flew 
up  on  a  rafter  and  began  to  crow  and  cackle,  and 
the  hare  became  so  frightened  that  he  scampered 
and  jumped  about,  both  high  and  low,  and  knocked 
and  scrambled  about  from  one  corner  of  the  room 
to  the  other. 

At  last  the  wolf  managed  to  get  out  of  the  house. 

"  Well,  to  know  one's  neighbors  is  to  add  to  one's 
wisdom,"  said  the  wolf,  who  was  waiting  outside ; 
"  I  suppose  you  had  a  grand  reception,  since  you 
stayed  so  long.  But  what  about  the  light?  I 
don't  see  either  pipe  or  smoke,"  said  he. 

"Yes,  that  was  a  nice  light  I  got,  and  a  nice  lot 
of  people  they  were,"  said  he"  who  had  been  inside. 
"  Such  treatment  I  never  met  with  before,  but  'as 
you  make  your  bed  so  you  must  lie,'  and  '  an  unex 
pected  guest  must  put  up  with  what  he  gets,'"  said 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.  7 

the  wolf.  "  No  sooner  had  I  got  inside  the  door 
than  the  shoemaker  threw  his  last  at  me,  and  I  fell 
on  my  head  in  the  middle  of  the  forge ;  there  sat 
two  smiths,  blowing  bellows  and  pinching  and 
snipping  bits  of  flesh  off  me  with  red-hot  tongs  and 
pincers  ;  the  hunter  rushed  about  the  room  looking 
for  his  gun,  but  as  luck  would  have  it,  he  couldn't 
find  it.  And  up  on  the  rafters  sat  some  one  beating 
his  arms  about  and  shouting :  '  Let's  hook  him !  let's 
hook  him!  Sling  him  up!  sling  him  up!'  and  if 
he  had  only  got  hold  of  me  I  should  never  have  got 
out  alive." 


THE 

GOLDEN 


BIKD. 


THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a 
king  who  had  a  garden;  in  that 
garden  there  was  an  apple  tree, 
and  on  that  apple  tree  there  grew 
a  golden  apple  every  year;  but 
when  the  time  came  to  pluck  the 
apple  it  was  gone,  and  no  one  knew  who  took 
it  or  what  became  of  it ;  but  gone  it  was. 

The  king  had  three  sons,  and  one  day  he  told 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.  9 

them  that  he  who  could  bring  him  the  apple,  or  get 
hold  of  the  thief,  should  have  the  kingdom  after 
him,  no  matter  whether  he  was  the  eldest,  the 
second  or  the  younger  son. 

The  eldest  set  out  first  and  sat  down  under  the 
tree  to  keep  watch  for  the  thief.  Soon  after  dark 
a  golden  bird  came  flying,  and  the  light  from  it 
was  so  strong  and  dazzling  that  it  could  be  seen  a 
long  way  off.  When  the  prince  saw  the  bird  and 
the  dazzling  light  he  became  so  frightened  that  he 
dared  not  stay  any  longer,  but  rushed  indoors  as 
fast  as  he  could. 

Next  morning  the  apple  was  gone;  the  prince 
had  then,  however,  recovered  his  courage  and  began 
to  get  ready  for  his  journey  and  wanted  to  set  off 
to  find  the  bird.  The  king  fitted  him  out  in  grand 
style  and  spared  neither  money  nor  fine  raiment. 
When  the  prince  had  gone  a  bit  on  the  way  he  be 
came  hungry,  opened  his  scrip  and  sat  down  to  his 
breakfast  by  the  roadside.  A  fox  then  came  out  of 
the  wood  and  sat  down  and  looked  at  him. 

"  Do  give  me  a  little  to  eat,"  said  the  fox. 

"  I'll  give  you  some  powder  and  shot,"  said  the 
prince ;  "  my  food  I  shall  want  myself ;  nobody  can 
tell  how  far  and  how  long  I  may  have  to  travel," 
said  he. 

"  Just  so,"  said  the  fox,  and  so  he  went  back  into 
the  wood  again. 

When  the  prince  had  finished  his  meal  and  rested 
awhile  he  set  out  on  his  way  again.  After  a  long 
time  he  came  to  a  big  city,  and  in  that  city  there 


10        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

was  an  inn,  where  there  was  always  joy  and  never 
any  sorrow ;  he  thought  that  would  be  a  nice  place 
to  stop  at,  and  so  he  remained.  And  there  was 
such  dancing  and  drinking  and  joy  and  merry 
making  that  he  forget  the  bird  and  his  father  and 
his  journey  and  the  whole  kingdom. 

Away  he  was  and  away  he  stopped. 

The  next  year  the  second  prince  was  to  watch  for 
the  thief  in  the  garden  ;  he  also  sat  down  under  the 
tree  when  the  apple  began  to  ripen.  But  one  night, 
all  of  a  sudden,  the  golden  bird  came  flying,  shining 
like  the  sun ;  the  prince  became  so  afraid  that  he 
took  to  his  heels  and  ran  indoors  as  fast  as  he  could. 

In  the  morning  the  apple  was  gone,  but  the  prince 
had  then  recovered  his  courage  and  wanted  to  set 
out  and  find  the  bird.  He  began  to  get  ready  and 
the  king  fitted  him  out  in  grand  style  and  spared 
neither  money  nor  fine  raiment.  But  the  same 
thing  happened  to  him  as  to  his  brother ;  when  he 
had  got  a  bit  on  the  way  he  became  hungry,  opened 
his  scrip  and  sat  down  to  his  breakfast  by  the  road 
side.  A  fox  then  came  out  from  the  pine  wood 
and  sat  down  and  looked  at  him. 

"  Do  give  me  a  little  to  eat,"  said  the  fox. 

"  I'll  give  you  some  powder  and  shot,"  said  the 
prince  ;  "  my  food  I  shall  want  myself ;  nobody  can 
tell  how  far  and  how  long  I  may  have  to  travel," 
said  he. 

"  Just  so,"  said  the  fox,  and  so  he  went  back  into 
the  wood  again. 

When  the  prince  had  finished  his  meal  and  rested 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.  11 

awhile,  he  set  out  on  his  way  again.  After  a  long 
time  he  came  to  the  same  city  and  the  same  inn, 
where  there  was  always  joy  and  never  any  sorrow ; 
and  there  he  also  thought  it  would  be  nice  to  stop, 
and  the  first  he  met  was  his  brother,  and  so  he  re 
mained.  The  brother  had  been  leading  a  gay  and 
reckless  life  and  had  scarcely  any  clothes  left  on  his 
back ;  but  now  he  began  afresh,  and  there  was  such 
dancing  and  drinking  and  joy  and  merriment  that 
the  second  prince  also  forgot  the  bird  and  his  father 
and  his  journey  and  the  whole  kingdom.  Away  he 
was  and  away  he  stopped. 

When  the  time  came  for  the  apple  to  ripen  again 
the  youngest  prince  was  to  go  into  the  garden  and 
watch  for  the  thief.  He  took  a  companion  with 
him  who  was  to  help  him  up  into  the  tree,  and  he 
also  took  with  him  a  keg  of  beer  and  a  pack  of 
cards  to  pass  away  the  time  with  so  that  he  should 
not  fall  asleep.  All  of  a  sudden  they  saw  a  bright 
light,  as  if  from  the  sun ;  every  feather  of  the  bird 
could  be  seen  long  before  it  came  to  the  tree.  The 
prince  climbed  up  into  the  tree  and  at  the  same 
time  the  golden  bird  swooped  down  and  took  the 
apple ;  the  prince  tried  to  seize  the  bird,  but  he 
only  caught  a  feather  out  of  its  tail. 

So  he  went  to  the  king's  bedroom,  and  as  he 
came  in  with  the  feather,  it  became  as  light  as  day. 

He  also  wanted  to  try  if  he  could  find  his  brothers 
and  catch  the  bird,  for  he  had  been  so  near  to  it 
that  he  had  got  a  feather  from  its  tail  and  would 
know  it  again  anywhere,  he  said. 


12          FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

Well,  the  king  went  and  pondered  long  whether 
he  should  let  him  go,  for  he  thought  the  youngest 
would  not  fare  any  better  than  the  two  eldest,  who 
ought  to  have  more  knowledge  of  the  world,  and 
he  was  afraid  he  should  lose  him  also.  But  the 
prince  begged  so  earnestly  that  at  last  he  got  per 
mission  to  go. 

He  then  began  to  get  ready  and  the  king  fitted 
him  out  in  grand  style,  both  with  clothes  and 
money,  and  so  he  set  off. 

When  he  had  traveled  for  some  time  he  became 
hungry  and  took  his  scrip  and  sat  down  to  have 
his  breakfast,  but  just  as  he  was  in  the  midst  of  it 
a  fox  came  out  of  the  wood  and  sat  down  close  by 
his  side  and  looked  at  him. 

"  Do  give  me  a  little  to  eat,"  said  the  fox. 

"  I  shall  want  the  food  myself,"  said  the  prince, 
"  for  I  cannot  tell  how  far  I  shall  have  to  travel, 
but  I  have  enough  to  give  you  a  little." 

When  the  fox  had  got  the  piece  of  meat  he  asked 
the  prince  where  he  was  going. 

Yes,  that  he  would  tell  him. 

"  If  you  will  listen  to  me,  I  will  help  you,  and 
you  will  have  good  luck,"  said  the  fox. 

The  prince  promised  he  would,  and  so  they  set 
off  together.  They  traveled  awhile  till  they  came 
to  the  same  city  and  the  same  inn,  where  there  was 
always  joy,  but  no  sorrow. 

"  I  must  keep  outside  here ;  the  dogs  are  rather 
a  nuisance,"  said  the  fox,  and  so  he  told  the  prince 
where  his  brothers  were  to  be  found  and  what  they 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.  13 

were  doing ;  "  and  if  you  go  in  there  you  will  not 
get  any  further  either,"  said  he. 

The  prince  promised  he  would  not  go  in  there, 
and  gave  him  his  hand  on  it,  and  so  each  went  his 
way.  But  when  the  prince  came  to  the  inn  and 
heard  the  noise  and  merriment  going  on  he  felt  he 
must  go  in ;  there  was  no  help  for  it,  and  when  he 
met  his  brothers  there  was  such  rejoicing  that  he 
forgot  both  the  fox  and  the  journey  and  the  bird 
and  his  father.  But  when  he  had  been  there  awhile 
the  fox  came — he  had  ventured  into  the  city  after 
all — and  opened  the  door  a  little  and  made  a  sign 
to  the  prince,  saying  that  now  they  must  be  off. 
So  the  prince  bethought  himself,  and  they  went 
their  way. 

When  they  had  traveled  awhile  they  saw  a  big 
mountain  far  away.  The  fox  said  : 

"  Three  hundred  miles  at  the  back  of  that  moun 
tain  there  is  a  gilded  linden  tree  with  golden  leaves, 
and  in  that  tree  sits  the  golden  bird  from  which 
you  took  the  feather." 

Thither  they  traveled  together.  When  the  prince 
was  going  to  catch  the  bird  the  fox  gave  him  some 
bright  feathers  which  he  was  to  wave  in  his  hands, 
and  so  attract  the  bird,  which  would  then  fly  down 
and  sit  on  his  hand. 

But  the  fox  said  he  must  not  touch  the  linden 
tree,  for  inside  it  was  a  big  troll,  who  owned  it, 
and  if  the  prince  only  touched  the  smallest  twig 
the  tro1!  would  come  out  and  kill  him  on  the  spot. 

Xo,  he  tfould  not  touch  it,  laid  the  prince ;  but 


14        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

when  he  had  got  the  bird  on  his  hand  he  thought 
he  must  have  a  twig  of  the  tree ;  there  was  no  help 
for  it,  it  was  so  bright  and  beautiful.  So  he  took 
a  tiny  little  sprig,  but  the  same  moment  the  troll 
came  out. 

u  Who  is  that  stealing  my  tree  and  my  bird  ?" 
roared  the  troll,  and  he  was  so  angry  that  he  spurted 
sparks  of  fire. 

"Thieves  believe  that  all  men  steal,"  said  the 
prince ;  "  but  only  those  get  hanged  who  do  not  steal 
properly,"  said  he. 

The  troll  said  that  made  no  difference,  and  was 
going  to  kill  him,  but  the  prince  begged  him  to 
spare  his  life. 

"  Well,"  said  the  troll,  "  if  you  can  bring  me  back 
the  horse  which  my  nearest  neighbor  has  taken 
from  me  you  will  get  off  with  your  life." 

"  Where  shall  I  find  it,  then  ?"  said  the  prince. 

"  Oh,  he  lives  three  hundred  miles  at  the  back 
of  that  big  blue  mountain  against  the  horizon 
yonder,"  said  the  troll. 

The  prince  promised  he  would  do  his  best.  But 
when  he  came  back  to  the  fox  he  found  him  in 
rather  a  bad  temper. 

"Now  you  have  got  yourself  into  trouble,"  said 
the  fox ;  "  if  you  had  listened  to  me  we  could  have 
been  on  our  way  home  by  this,"  said  he. 

So  they  had  to  make  a  fresh  start,  for  the  prince 
had  pledged  his  word,  and  his  life  depended  on  his 
finding  the  horse. 

At  last  they  got  there,  but  as  the  prince  was 
going  to  take  the  horse  the  fox  said  : 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.  15 

"  When  you  come  into  the  stable  you  will  find  all 
sorts  of  bridles  hanging  on  the  wall,  both  of  gold 
and  silver;  you  must  not  touch  them,  for  then  the 
troll  will  come  and  kill  you  right  away ;  you  must 
take  the  ugliest  and  shabbiest  you  see." 

Yes,  the  prince  promised  he  would  ;  but  when  he 
came  into  the  stable  he  thought  it  was  quite  un 
reasonable  not  to  take  a  fine  bridle,  for  there  were 
plenty  of  them,  and  so  he  took  the  brightest  he 
could  find.  It  was  as  bright  as  gold,  but  just  then 
the  troll  came  and  was  so  angry  that  sparks  flew 
from  him. 

"  Who  is  that  stealing  my  horse  and  my  bridle  ?" 
he  shrieked. 

"  Thieves  believe  that  all  men  steal,"  said  the 
prince ;  "  but  only  those  get  hanged  who  do  not 
steal  properly,"  said  he. 

"  Well,  that  makes  no  difference.  I'll  kill  you  on 
the  spot,"  shouted  the  trolL 

But  the  prince  begged  him  to  spare  his  life. 

"  Well,"  said  the  troll,  "  if  you  can  bring  me  back 
the  fair  damsel  which  my  nearest  neighbor  has 
taken  from  me  I  will  spare  you." 

"  Whereabouts  does  he  live,  then  ?"  asked  the 
prince. 

"  Oh,  he  lives  three  hundred  miles  at  the  back  of 
that  big  blue  mountain  against  the  horizon  yonder," 
said  the  troll. 

The  prince  promised  he  would  fetch  the  damsel, 
and  was  allowed  to  go,  and  so  he  escaped  with  his 
life. 


16        FAIRY    TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

But  when  he  came  out  }rou  may  imagine  how 
angry  the  fox  was. 

"  Now  you've  got  yourself  into  trouble  again," 
said  he  ;  "  if  you  had  listened  to  me  we  could  have 
been  on  our  way  home  long  ago.  I  almost  think 
I  will  not  go  with  you  any  further." 

But  the  prince  begged  and  prayed  and  promised 
he  would  never  do  anything  else  but  what  the  fox 
told  him,  if  he  would  only  remain  with  him.  At 
last  the  fox  gave  in,  and  they  became  firm  friends 
again  ;  so  they  set  off  once  more  and  came  at  last 
to  where  the  fair  damsel  was. 

"  Well,"  said  the  fox,  "  I  have  your  promise,  but 
I  dare  not  let  you  in  to  the  troll,  after  all ;  this  time 
I  must  go  myself."  So  he  went  in,  and  after  awhile 
he  came  out  with  the  damsel,  and  so  they  went 
back  the  same  way  they  had  come. 

When  they  got  to  the  troll,  who  had  the  horse, 
they  took  both  the  horse  and  the  brightest  bridle ; 
and  when  they  got  to  the  troll  who  had  the  linden 
tree  and  the  bird,  they  took  both  the  tree  and  the 
bird  and  started  off  with  them. 

When  they  had  got  a  bit  on  the  way  they  came 
to  a  field  of  rye,  and  the  fox  then  said : 

"  I  hear  a  thundering  noise  ;  you  had  better  go"on 
ahead ;  I  will  remain  here  awhile,"  he  said.  He 
then  plaited  himself  a  gown  of  rye  straw,  in  which 
he  looked  like  a  preacher.  All  at  once  the  three 
trolls  came  rushing  along,  hoping  to  overtake  the 
prince. 

"  Have  you  seen  any  one  passing  here  with  a  fair 


FAIRY  TALES   F£OM  THE   FAR  NORTH.  U 

damsel,  a  horse  with  a  golden  bridle,  a  golden  bird, 
and  a  gilded  linden  tree  ?"  they  shouted  to  the  fox, 
as  he  stood  there  preaching. 

"  Well,  I've  heard  from  ray  grandmother's  grand 
mother  that  something  of  the  kind  passed  this  way, 
but  that  was  in  the  good  old  times,  when  my 
grandmother's  grandmother  baked  halfpenny  cakes 
and  gave  back  the  halfpenny." 

Then  all  the  trolls  burst  out  laughing:  "Ha,  ha, 
ha  !"  they  laughed  and  held  on  to  one  another. 

"  If  we  have  slept  so  long  we  may  as  well  turn 
our  noses  homeward,  and  go  to  sleep  again,"  they 
said,  and  so  they  went  back  the  way  they  came. 

The  fox  then  set  off  after  the  prince,  but  when 
they  came  to  the  city  where  the  inn  and  his 
brothers  were,  he  said  : 

"  I  dare  not  go  through  the  town  on  account  of 
the  dogs ;  I  must  go  my  own  way  just  above  here, 
but  you  must  take  good  care  your  brothers  do  not 
get  hold  of  you." 

But  when  the  prince  came  into  the  city  he 
thought  it  would  be  too  bad  if  he  did  not  look  in 
upon  his  brothers  and  have  a  word  with  them,  and 
so  he  tarried  there  for  awhile. 

When  the  brothers  saw  him  they  came  out  and 
took  both  the  damsel,  and  the  horse,  and  the  bird, 
and  the  linden  tree,  and  everything  from  him,  and 
they  put  him  in  a  barrel,  and  threw  him  into  the 
sea ;  and  so  they  set  off  home  to  the  king's  palace, 
with  the  damsel,  and  the  horse,  and  the  bird,  and 
the  linden  tree,  and  everything.  But  the  damsel 


18        FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

would  not  speak,  and  she  became  pale  and  wretched 
to  look  upon ;  the  horse  got  so  thin  and  miserable 
that  it  could  hardly  hang  together  ;  the  bird  became 
silent  and  shone  no  more,  and  the  linden  tree 
withered. 

In  the  meantime  the  fox  was  sneaking  about  out 
side  the  city  where  the  inn  and  the  merriment 
were,  and  was  waiting  for  the  prince  and  the 
damsel,  and  wondered  why  they  did  not  return. 

He  went  hither  and  thither,  waiting  and  watcli- 
for  them,  and  at  last  he  came  down  to  the  shore, 
and  when  he  saw  the  barrel,  which  was  lying  out  at 
sea  drifting,  he  shouted  :  "  Why  are  you  drifting 
about  there,  you  empty  barrel  ?" 

"  Oh,  it  is  I,"' said  the  prince  in  the  barrel. 

The  fox  then  swam  out  to  sea  as  fast  as  he  coulc 
got  hold  of  the  barrel,  and  towed  it  to  land  ;  then 
he  began  to  gnaw  the  hoops,  and  when  he  had  got 
some  off  the  barrel,  he  said  to  the  prince  :  "  Stamp 
and  kick. 

The  prince  stamped  and  kicked  till  all  the  staves 
flew  about,  and  out  he  jumped  from  the  barrel. 

So  they  went  together  to  the  king's  palace,  a 
when  they  got  there  the  damsel  regained  her  beai 
and  began  to  talk,  the  horse  became  so  fat  and  sle 
that  every  hair  glistened  ;  the  light  ^one  from  tl 
bird  and  it  began  to  sing  ;  the  linde.  began  tc 

blossom  and  its  leaves  to  sparkle,  and  the  damsel 
said,  "  He  is  the  one  who  has  saved  us." 

They  planted  the  linden  tree  in  the  garden,  and 
the  youngest  prince  was  to  marry  the  princess,  for 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 


19 


such  the  damsel  really  was ;  but  the  two  eldest 
brothers  were  put  each  in  a  spiked  barrel  and 
down  a  high  mountain. 


Then  they  began  to  prepare  for  the  wedding,  but 
the  fox  first  asked  the  prince  to  put  him  on  the 
block  and  cut  his  head  off,  and  although  the  prince 
both  prayed  and  cried,  there  was  no  help  for  it ;  he 


20         FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

would  have  to  do  it.  But  as  he  cut  the  head  off, 
the  fox  turned  into  a  handsome  prince,  and  he  was 
the  brother  of  the  princess,  whom  they  had  rescued 
from  the  troll. 

So  the  wedding  came  off  and  everything  was  so 
grand  and  splendid,  that  the  news  of  the  festivities 
reached  all  the  way  here. 


THE  FOX  AS  HEEDSBOY. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  woman,  who  went 
out  to  look  for  a  herdsboy,  and  so  she  met  a  bear. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?"  said  the  bear. 

"  Oh,  I'm  looking  for  a  herdsboy,"  answered  the 
woman. 

"  Won't  you  take  me  ?"  asked  the  bear. 

"  Well,  if  you  only  knew  how  to  call  the  flock," 
said  the  wife.  "  Ho-y !"  shouted  the  bear. 

"  Xo,  I  won't  have  you !"  said  the  woman  when 
she  heard  this,  and  went  on  her  way. 

When  she  had  gone  on  awhile  she  met  a  wolf. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?"  said  the  wolf. 


I 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 


"  I  am  looking  for  a  herdsboy,"  said  the  woman. 

"Won't  you  take  me?"  said  the  wolf. 

"  Well,  if  you  only  knew  how  to  call  the  flock,' 
said  the  woman.  "  U-g-h  !"  howled  the  wolf. 

"  No,  I  won't  have  you,"  said  the  woman. 

When  she  had  gone  a  bit  further  she  met  a  fox. 

"  Where  are  you  going?"  said  the  fox. 

"  Oh,  I'm  looking  for  a  herdsboy,"  said  the  woman. 

"Won't  you  take  me?"  asked  the  fox. 

"  Well,  if  you  only  knew  how  to  call  the  flock," 
said  the  woman. 

"  Dil-dal-holom  !"  called  the  fox  in  a  thin,  squeaky 
voice. 

"Yes,  I'll  t-  ke  you  for  a  herdsboy,"  said  the 
woman  ;  and  so  she  put  the  fox  to  look  after  her 
flocks.  On  the  first  day  he  ate  up  all  the  goats 
belonging  to  the  woman  ;  the  second  day  he  finished 
all  her  sheep,  and  the  third  day  he  ate  all  the  cows. 

When  he  came  home  in  the  evening  the  woman 
asked  what  he  had  done  with  all  the  flocks. 

"  The  skulls  are  i*.  the  brook  and  the  bones  in 
the  wood,"  said  the  :>:,-. 

The  woman  was  )usy  cnurning,  but  she  thought 
she  might  as  well  go  and  look  for  her  flocks.  While 
she  was  away  the  fox  slipped  into  the  churn  and 
ate  all  the  cream.  When  the  woman  came  back 
and  saw  this  she  became  so  angry  that  she  took 
a  small  clot  of  cream,  which  was  left,  and  threw  it 
after  the  fox,  splashing  the  end  of  his  tail  with  it, 
and  that's  the  reason  why  the  fox  has  a  white  tip 
to  his  tail  ! 


ASHIEPATTLE  *  WHO  ATE  WITH  THE 
TKOLL  FOR  A  WAGEK. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  peasant  who  had 
three  sons.  He  was  badly  off,  and  old  and  feeV'e, 
and  the  sons  would  not  do  any  work. 

To  the  farm  belonged  a  large  pine  forest,  and  the 
father  wanted  his  sons  to  cut  timber  in  it,  and  try 
to  get  some  of  his  debts  paid  off.  At  last  he  got 
them  to  listen  to  him,  and  the  eldest  one  was  to  go 
out  first  and  fell  trees.  When  he  got  into  the  forest 
and  began  felling  an  old  bearded  pine,  a  great  big 
troll  came  up  to  him. 

"  If  you  cut  dowfi1  my  trees,  I'll  kill  you !"  said 
the  troll. 

When  the  lad  heard  this  he  threw  down  the  ax 
and  set  off  home  as  fast  as  he  could.  He  got  there 
quite  out  of  breath,  and  told  what  had  happened 
to  him,  but  the  father  said  he  was  chicken-hearted ; 
the  trolls  had  never  frightened  him  from  felling 
trees  when  he  'was  young,  he  said. 

The  next  da^  the  second  son  was  to  go,  and  the 
same  thing  happened  to  him.  He  had  no  sooner 

*The  favorite  hero  of  most  Norwegian  fairy  tales  is  called 
A .ikeladen,  &  sort  of  male  Cinderella,  and  is  always  the  youngest 
son  of  the  family. 


54        *AIRY  TALES  FROM  THE   FAR  NORTH. 

struck  some  blows  at  the  pine  than  the  troll  came 
and  said : 

"  If  you  cut  down  my  trees  I'll  kill  you !" 

The  lad  hardly  dared  to  look  at  him ;  he  threw 
down  the  ax  and  took  to  his  heels,  just  like  his 
brother,  only  rather  quicker. 

When  he  came  home  the  father  became  angry, 
and  said  that  the  trolls  had  never  frightened  him 
when  he  was  young. 

On  the  third  day  Ashiepattle  wanted  to  set  out. 

"  You  indeed !"  said  the  two  eldest ;  "  you'Jl  never 
be  able  to  do  anything,  you  who  have  never  been 
outside  the  door !" 

Ashiepattle  did  not  answer,  but  only  asked  for 
plenty  of  food  to  take  with  him.  His  mother  had 
nothing  ready,  and  so  she  put  on  the  pot  and  made 
a  cheese  for  him,  which  he  placed  in  his  scrip,  and 
then  set  out  from  home.  When  he  had  been  felling 
trees  awhile,  the  troll  came  to  him  and  said: 

"  If  you  cut  down  my  trees  I'll  kill  you !" 

But  the  lad  was  not  slow ;  he  ran  into  the  forest 
for  the  cheese  and  squeezed  it,  so  that  the  whey 
spurted  from  it. 

"  If  you  don't  be  quiet,"  he  shouted  to  the  troll, 
"Til  squeeze  you  just  as  I  squeeze  the  water  out  of 
this  white  stone." 

"Oh  dear,  oh  dear!  do  spare  me!"  said  the  troll, 
"  and  I'll  help  you." 

Well,  on  that  condition  the  lad  would  spare  him, 
and  as  the  troll  was  clever  at  felling  trees,  they  cut 
them  down  by  the  dozen  during  the  day.  Toward 
evening  the  troll  said  : 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.  25 

"  You  had  better  come  home  with  me ;  it  is  nearer 
than  to  your  place." 

"Well,  the  boy  went  home  with  him,  and  when 
they  got  there  the  troll  was  to  light  the  fire  on  the 
hearth,  while  the  boy  fetched  the  water  for  the 
porridge.  But  the  two  iron  buckets  that  were  there 
were  so  big  and  heavy  he  was  not  even  able  to 
move  them.  So  the  boy  said : 

"  It  is  hardly  worth  while  to  take  these  thimbles 
with  me ;  I'll  go  and  fetch  the  whole  well." 

"  Oh  dear,  no  !"  said  the  troll,  "  I  cannot  lose  my 
well;  you  make  the  fire,  and  I'll  fetch  the  water." 

When  he  came  back  with  the  water  they  boiled 
a  great  big  caldron  of  porridge. 

"If  it's  all  the  same  to  you,"  said  the  lad,  "I'll 
lay  a  wager  I'll  eat  more  than  you." 

"All  right,"  said  the  troll,  for  he  thought  he 
could  easily  manage  that;  but  the  boy  took  his 
scrip  without  the  troll  seeing  it,  and  tied  it  in  front 
of  him,  and  managed  to  put  more  porridge  in  the 
scrip  than  he  ate  himself.  When  the  scrip  was  full 
he  took  his  knife  and  cut  a  slit  in  it. 

The  troll  looked  at  him,  but  didn't  say  anything. 
When  they  had  been  eating  a  good  while  the  trolV 
put  away  his  spoon,  and  said : 

"  I  can't  eat  any  more." 

"  You  must  eat,"  answered  the  lad.  "  I'm  scarcely 
halfway  through.  Do  as  I  did,  and  cut  a  hole  in 
your  stomach,  and  then  you  can  eat  as  much  as  you 
like." 

"But  I  suppose  it  hurts  one  dreadfully?"  asked 
the  troll. 


26        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

"  Oh,  nothing  worth  talking  about,"  answered  the 
lad. 

So  the  troll  did  as  the  lad  told  him,  and  as  you 
will  easily  understand,  that  was  the  end  of  him. 
But  the  lad  took  all  the  silver  and  gold  which  was 
in  the  mountain,  and  went  home.  With  that  he 
would  be  able  to  pay  off  something  of  his  father's 
debt. 


v,- 


. 


THE  QUEEN  AT  THE 
BOTTOM  OF  THE  SEA. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  in  the 
old,  old  days  there  were  two 
brothers,  one  of  whom  was 
rich  and  the  other  poor. 
When  Christinas  Eve  came 
the  poor  brother  had  not  a 
morsel  in  the  house,  neither 
of  meat  nor  bread;  and  so  he 
went  to  his  rich  brother,  and 
asked  for  a  trifle  for  Christ 
mas,  in  heaven's  name.  It 
was  not  the  first  time  the 
brother  had  helped  him,  but 


28       FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   EAR  NORTH. 

he  was  always  very  close-fisted,  and  was  not  par 
ticularly  glad  to  see  tr'vr  'his  time. 

"If  you'll  do  Avhat  I  tell  you,  you  shall  have  a 
whole  ham,"  he  said.  The  poor  brother  promised 
he  would,  and  was  very  grateful  into  the  bargain. 

"There  it  is,  and  now  go  to  the  devil!"  said  the 
rich  brother,  and  threw  the  ham  across  to  him. 

"  Well,  what  I  have  promised  I  must  keep,'7  said 
the  other  one.  He  took  the  ham,  and  set  out.  He 
walked  and  walked  the  whole  day,  and  as  it  was 
getting  dark  he  came  to  a  place  where  the  lights 
were  shining  brightly.  "  This  is  most  likely  the 
place,"  thought  the  man  with  the  ham. 

In  the  woodshed  stood  an  old  man  with  a  long 
white  beard,  cutting  firewood  for  Christmas. 

"  Good-evening,"  said  he  with  the  ham. 

"Good-evening  to  you,"  said  the  man.  "Where 
are  you  going  so  late?" 

"  I  am  going  to  the  devil — that  is  to  say,  if  1  am 
on  the  right  way,"  answered  the  poor  man. 

"  Yes,  you  are  quite  right;  this  is  his  place,"  said 
the  old  man.  "When  you  get  in  they  will  all 
want  to  buy  your  ham,  for  ham  is  scarce  food  here ; 
but  you  must  not  sell  it  unless  you  get  the  hand- 
quern,  which  stands  just  behind  the  door.  When 
you  come  out  again  I'll  teach  you  how  to  use  it. 
You  will  find  it  useful  in  many  ways." 

The  man  with  the  ham  thanked  him  for  all  the 
information  and  knocked  at  the  door. 

When  he  got  in  it  happened  just  as  the  old  man 
had  said.  All  the  imps,  both  big  and  small,  flocked 


FAIRY  TALES   FJIOM   THE   FAR   NORTH.          29 

around  him  like  ants  in  a  field,  and  the  one  outbid 
the  other  for  the  ham. 

"  Well,"  said  the  man,  "  my  good  woman  and  I 
were  to  have  it  for  Christmas  Eve,  but  since  you 
want  it  so  badly  1  will  let  you  have  it.  But  if  I  am 
going  to  part  with  it,  I  want  that  hand-quern  which 
stands  behind  the  door." 

The  devil  did  not  like  to  part  with  it,  and  higgled 
and  haggled  with  the  man,  but  he  stuck  to  what  he 
had  said,  and  in  the  end  the  devil  had  to  part  with 
the  quern. 

When  the  man  came  out  he  asked  the  old  wood 
cutter  how  he  was  to  use  the  quern,  and  when  he 
had  learned  this,  he  thanked  the  old  man  and  set 
out  homeward,  as  quickly  as  he  could  ;  but  after  all 
he  did  not  get  home  till  the  clock  struck  twelve  on 
Christmas  Eve. 

"  Where  in  all  the  world  have  you  been  ?"  said 
his  wife.  "  Here  have  I  been  sitting,  hour  aftei 
hour,  waiting  and  watching  for  you,  and  have  not 
had  as  much  as  two  chips  to  lay  under  the  porridge 
pot." 

"Well,  I  couldn't  get  back  before,"  said  the 
man.  "  I  have  had  a  good  many  things  to  look 
after,  and  I've  had  a  long  way  to  walk  as  well ;  but 
now  I'll  show  you  something,"  said  he,  and  he  put 
the  quern  on  the  table.  He  asked  it  first  to  grind 
candles,  then  a  cloth,  and  then  food  and  beer,  and 
everything  else  that  was  good  for  Christmas  cheer ; 
and  as  he  spoke  the  quern  brought  them  forth. 
The  woman  crossed  herself  time  after  time  and 


30  FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

wanted  to  know  where  her   husband  had  got  the 
quern  from ;  but  this  he  would  not  tell  her. 

"  It  does  not  matter  where  I  got  it  from  ;  you  see 
the  quern  is  good  and  the  mill  stream  is  not  likely 
to  freeze,"  said  the  man.  So  he  ground  food  and 
drink  and  all  good  things  during  Christmas  ;  and 
the  third  day  he  invited  his  friends,  as  he  wanted 
to  give  them  a  feast.  When  the  rich  brother  saw 
all  that  was  in  the  house  he  became  both  angry 
and  furious,  for  he  begrudged  his  brother  every 
thing. 

"  On  Christmas  Eve  he  was  so  needy  that  he  came 
to  me  and  asked  for  a  trifle  in  heaven's  name  ;  and 
now  he  gives  a  feast,  as  if  he  were  both  a  count  and 
a  king,"  said  the  brother.  "  Where  did  you  get  all 
your  riches  from  ?"  he  said  to  his  brother. 

u  From  just  behind  the  door,"  he  answered,  for 
he  did  not  care  to  tell  his  brother  much  about  it. 
But  later  in  the  evening,  when  he  had  drank  a  little 
freely,  he  could  no  longer  resist,  but  brought  out 
the  quern. 

•"  There  you  see  that  which  has  brought  me  all 
my  riches,"  he  said,  and  so  he  let  the  quern  grind 
first  one  thing  and  then  another. 

When  the  brother  sa\v  this  he  was  determined  to 
have  the  quern  at  all  cost,  and  at  last  it  was  settled 
he  should  have  it,  but  three  hundred  dollars  was  to 
be  the  price  of  it.  The  brother  was,  however,  to 
keep  it  till  the  harvest  began  ;  "for  if  I  keep  it  so 
long  I  can  grind  out  food  for  many  years  to  come," 
he  thought. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.       31 

Daring  that  time  you  may  be  sure  the  quern 
did  not  rust,  and  when  the  harvest  began  the  rich 
brother  got  it ;  but  the  other  had  taken  great  care 
not  to  show  him  how  to  use  it. 

It  was  evening  when  the  rich  brother  got  the 
quern  home,  and  in  the  morning  he  asked  his  wife 
to  go  out  and  help  the  haymakers ;  he  would  get 
the  breakfast  ready  himself  to-day,  he  said. 

When  it  was  near  breakfast .  time  he  put  the 
quern  on  the  breakfast  table. 

"  Grind  herrings  and  broth,  and  do  it  quickly  and 
well,"  said  the  man,  and  the  quern  began  to  bring 
forth  herrings  and  broth,  and  filled  first  all  the 
dishes  and  tubs,  and  afterward  began  flooding  the 
whole  kitchen. 

The  man  fiddled  and  fumbled  and  tried  to  stop 
the  quern,  but  however  much  he  twisted  and 
fingered  it,  the  quern  went  on  grinding,  and  in  a 
little  while  the  broth  reached  so  high  that  the  man 
was  very  near  drowning.  He  then  pulled  open  the 
parlor  door,  but  it  was  not  long  before  the  quern 
had  filled  the  parlor  also,  and  it  was  just  in  the  very 
nick  of  time  that  the  man  put  his  hand  down  into 
the  broth  and  got  hold  of  the  latch,  and  when  he 
had  got  the  door  open,  he  was  soon  out  of  the 
parlor,  you  ma}r  be  sure.  He  rushed  out,  and  the 
herrings  and  the  broth  came  pouring  out  after  him, 
like  a  stream,  down  the  fields  and  meadows. 

The  wife,  who  was  out  haymaking,  now  thought 
it  took  too  long  a  time  to  get  the  breakfast  ready. 

"  If  my  husband  doesn't  call  us  soon  we  must  go 


32          FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

home  whether  or  no  :  I  don't  suppose  he  knows 
much  about  making  broth,  so  I  must  go  and  help 
him,"  said  the  wife  to  the  haymakers. 

They  began  walking  homeward,  but  when  they 
had  got  a  bit  up  the  hill  they  met  the  stream  of 
broth  with  the  herrings  tossing  about  in  it  and  the 
man  himself  running  in  front  of  it  all. 

"  I  wish  all  of  3^ou  had  a  hundred  stomachs 
each  !"  shouted  the'  man  ;  "  but  take  care  you  don't 
get  drowned."  And  he  rushed  past  them  as  if  the 
Evil  One  was  at  his  heels,  down  to  where  his 
brother  lived.  He  asked  him  for  heaven's  sake  to 
take  back  the  quern,  and  that  at  once  ;  "  if  it  goes 
on  grinding  another  hour  the  whole  parish  will 
perish  in  broth  and  herrings,"  he  said.  But  the 
brother  would  not  take  it  back  on  any  account  be 
fore  his  brother  had  paid  him  three  hundred 
dollars  more,  and  this  he  had  to  do.  The  poor 
brother  now  had  plenty  of  money,  and  before  long 
he  bought  a  farm  much  grander  than  the  one  on 
which  his  rich  brother  lived,  and  with  the  quern  he 
ground  so  much  gold  that  he  covered  the  farm 
stead  with  gold  plates  and,  as  it  lay  close  to  the 
shore,  it  glittered  and  shone  far  out  at  sea.  All 
those  who  sailed  past  wanted  to  call  and  visit  the 
rich  man  in  the  golden  house,  and  everybody 
wanted  to  see  the  wonderful  quern,  for  its  fame 
had  spread  both  far  and  wide,  and  there  was  no 
one  who  had  not  heard  it  spoken  of. 

After  a  long  while  there  came  a  skipper  who 
wanted  to  see  the  quern ;  he  asked  if  it  could  grind 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.  33 

salt.  Yes,  that  it  could,  said  he  who  owned  it ;  and 
when  the  skipper  heard  this  he  wanted  the  quern  by 
hook  or  by  crook,  cost  what  it  might,  for  if  he  had 
it  he  thought  he  need  not  sail  far  away  across 
dangerous  seas  for  cargoes  of  salt. 

At  first  the  man  did  not  want  to  part  with  it,  but 
the  skipper  both  begged  and  prayed,  and  at  last  he 
sold  it  and  got  many,  many  thousand  dollars  for  it. 

As  soon  as  the  skipper  had  got  the  quern  on  his 
back  he  did  not  stop  long,  for  he  was  afraid  the 
man  would  change  his  inind,  and  as  for  asking  how 
to  use  it  he  had  no  time  to  do  that ;  he  made  for 
his  ship  as  quickly  as  he  could,  and  when  he  had 
got  out  to  sea  a  bit  he  had  the  quern  brought  up 
on  deck. 

"Grind  salt,  and  that  both  quickly  and  well," 
said  the  skipper,  and  the  quern  began  to  grind  out 
salt  so  that  it  spurted  to  all  sides. 

When  the  skipper  had  got  the  skip  filled  he 
wanted  to  stop  the  quern,  but  however  much  he 
tried  and  whatever  he  did  the  quern  went  on  grind 
ing,  and  the  mound  of  salt  grew  higher  and  higher, 
and  at  last  the  ship  sank. 

There  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea  stands  the  quern 
grinding  till  this  very  day,  and  that  is  the  reason 
why  the  sea  is  salt. 


LITTLE  BUTTERKIK 


ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  woman  who  was 
sitting  baking.  She  had  a  little  boy  who  was  so 
fat  and  plump  Jand  who  was  so  fond  of  good  food 
that  she  called  him  Butterkin.  She  also  had  a  dog 
called  Goldtooth. 

One  day,  all  of  a  sudden,  the  dog  began  to  bark. 

"Run  out,  Butterkin!"  said  the  woman,  "and 
see  what  Goldtooth  is  barking  at." 

So  the  boy  ran  out  and  came  back,  saying : 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          35 

" Oh,  mother,  mother!  There's  a  great  big  troll- 
wife  coming  here,  with  her  head  under  her  arm 
and  a  bag  on  her  back." 

"  Kim  under  the  table  and  hide  yourself,"  said 
his  mother. 

The  big  troll- wife  then  came  in. 

«  Good-day  !"  she  said. 

"  Good-day  to  you !"  said  Butterkin's  mother. 

"  Is  Butterkin  at  home  to-day  ?"  asked  the  troll- 
wife. 

"  No,  he  is  in  the  forest  with  his  father,  after  the 
ptarmigan,"  answered  the  woman. 

"  That's  a  pity,"  said  the  troll ;  "  for  I  have  such 
a  nice  little  silver  knife  I  wanted  to  give  him." 

"  Peep,  peep!  Here  I  am,"  said  Butterkin  under 
the  table,  and  crept  out. 

"  I  am  so  old  and  stiff  in  my  back,"  said  the  troll, 
"  you  must  get  into  the  bag  and  find  it  yourself." 

~No  sooner  was  Butterkin  in  the  bag  than  the 
troll  threw  it  across  her  back  and  walked  off  with 
him.  When  they  had  gone  a  bit  on  the  way  the 
troll  got  tired  and  asked  : 

"  How  far  have  I  to  go  before  I  can  lie  down 
and  sleep  ?" 

"  About  a  mile,"  answered  Butterkin.  The  troll 
then  put  down  the  bag  by  the  roadside  and  went  in 
among  the  bushes  by  herself  and  lay  down  to  sleep. 
In  the  meantime  Butterkin  took  the  opportunity, 
pulled  out  his  knife,  cut  a  hole  in  the  bag  and 
jumped  out ;  he  then  put  a  big  root  of  a  fir  tree  in 
his  place  and  ran  home  to  his  mother.  When  the 


36        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

troll-wife  reached  home  and  saw  what  she  had  in 
the  bag  she  flew  into  a  great  rage. 

The  next  day  the  woman  sat  baking  again.  All 
at  once  the  dog  began  to  bark. 

"Bun  out,  Butterkin,"  said  she,  "and  see  what 
Goldtooth  is  barking  at." 

"Oh,  mother,  mother!  It's  that  terrible  old 
troll!"  said  Butterkin.  "Here  she  is  again,  with 
her  head  under  her  arm  and  a  big  bag  on  her  back." 

"Eun  under  the  table  and  hide  yourself,"  said 
his  mother. 

"  Good-day  !"  said  the  troll-wife.  "  Is  Butterkin 
at  home  to-day  ?" 

"No,  indeed  he  is  not,"  said  his  mother;  "he  is 
out  in  the  forest  with  his  father,  after  the  ptarmigan." 

"  That's  a  pity !"  said  the  troll ;  "  for  I  have  such 
a  nice  little  silver  fork  I  wanted  to  give  him." 

"  Peep,  peep !  Here  I  am !"  said  Butterkin,  and 
crept  out. 

"I  am  so  stiff  in  my  back,"  said  the  troll,  "you 
must  get  into  the  bag  and  find  it  }Tourself." 

No  sooner  was  Butterkin  in  the  bag  than  the 
troll  threw  it  across  her  back  and  walked  off  with 
him.  When  they  had  gone  a  good  bit  on  the  way 
the  troll  got  tired  and  asked  : 

"  How  far  have  I  to  go  before  I  can  lie  down  and 
sleep?" 

"About  two  miles,"  answered  Butterkin.  The 
troll  then  put  down  the  bag  by  the  roadside  and 
went  into  the  wood  and  lay  down  to  sleep.  While 
the  troll-wife  took  her  nap,  Butterkin  cut  a  hole 


FAIRY  TALES  r'ROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          37 

in  the  bag,  and  when  he  had  got  out  he  put  a  big 
stone  in  his  place.  As  soon  as  the  troll- wife  reached 
home  she  lighted  a  great  fire  in  the  hearth  and  put 
on  a  large  caldron  in  which  to  boil  Butterkin,  but 
when  she  took  the  bag  to  empty  Butterkin  into 
the  caldron,  the  stone  fell  out,  and  knocked  a  hole 
in  the  bottom  of  the  caldron,  so  the  water  rushed 
out  and  put  out  the  fire.  The  troll  then  became 
very  angry  and  said : 

"Let  him  make  himself  ever  so  heavy,  I'll  be 
even  with  him  yet." 

The  third  time  it  happened  just  as  before ;  Gold- 
tooth  began  to  bark,  and  so  the  mother  said  to 
Butterkin : 

"Kun  out,  Butterkin,  and  see  what  Goldtooth 
is  barking  at." 

Butterkin  then  ran  out  and  came  back  saying : 

"  Oh,  mother,  mother !  It's  that  troll  again,  with 
her  head  under  her  arm  and  a  bag  on  her  back. 

"  Eun  under  the  table  and  hide  yourself,"  said 
the  mother. 

"  Good-day !"  said  the  troll,  as  she  came  in  through 
the  door.  "  Is  Butterkin  home  to-day  ?" 

"No,  indeed  he  is  not,"  said  his  mother;  "he  is 
in  the  forest  with  his  father,  after  the  ptarmigan." 

"  That's  a  pity  !"  said  the  troll-wife,  "  for  I  have 
such  a  nice  little  silver  spoon  I  wanted  to  give  him." 

"  Peep,  peep !  Here  I  am  !"  said  Butterkin,  and 
crept  out  from  under  the  table. 

"I  am  so  stiff  in  my  back,"  said  the  troll,  "you 
must  get  into  the  bag  and  find  it  yourself." 


38          FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

No  sooner  had  Butterkin  got  into  the  bag  than 
the  troll  threw  it  across  her  back  and  walked  away 
with  it. 

This  time  the  troll-wife  did  not  lie  down  and 
sleep,  but  went  straight  home  with  Butterkin  in  the 
bag.  It  was  a  Sunday  when  they  got  home,  and  so 
the  troll  said  to  her  daughter : 

"  Now  you  must  take  Butterkin  and  kill  him  and 
make  broth  of  him,  till  I  come  back  again,  for  I  am 
going  to  church,  and  shall  ask  some  friends  for 
dinner." 

When  she  was  gone  the  daughter  went  to  take 
Butterkin  to  kill  him,  but  she  did  not  quite  know 
how  to  set  about  it. 

"  Wait  a  bit !  I'll  show  you  how  to  do  it !"  said 
Butterkin;  "just  put  your  head  on  the  block  and 
see  how  it's  done." 

She  did  so,  poor  silly  thing,  and  Butterkin  took 
the  ax  and  cut  off  her  head,  just  as  if  it  had  been 
that  of  a  chicken ;  he  then  put  the  head  in  the  bed 
and  the  body  in  the  caldron,  and  made  broth  of  the 
daughter,  and  when  he  had  done  this  he  climbed  up 
on  the  roof,  just  over  the  door,  taking  with  him  the 
fir  root  and  the  stone,  and  put  the  first  over  the 
door  and  the  other  across  the  top  of  the  chimney. 

When  the  people  came  home  from  church  and 
saw  the  head  in  the  bed  they  thought  that  the 
daughter  had  lain  down  and  was  asleep,  so  they 
thought  they  would  taste  the  broth. 

"  This  But terkin- broth  tastes  nice  !"  said  the  troll- 
wife. 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.         39 

"  This  daughter-broth  tastes  nice  !"  said  Butterkin, 
but  they  took  no  heed. 

The  troll-wife  then  took  the  spoon  to  taste  the 
broth. 

"  This  Butterkin-broth  tastes  nice,"  she  said. 

"  This  daughter-broth  tastes  nice,"  said  Butterkin 
down  the  chimney. 

They  then  began  to  wonder  who  it  could  be,  and 
went  out  to  see.  But  when  they  came  outside  the 
door,  Butterkin  threw  the  fir  root  and  stone  at 
their  heads  and  killed  them  all  on  the  spot.  He 
then  took  all  the  gold  and  silver  that  was  in  the 
house,  and  you  may  imagine  how  rich  he  became  ; 
and  so  he  went  home  to  his  mother. 


THE  COSTTKAKY  WOMAN 


THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  man  who  had  a 
wife,  and  she  was  so  contrary  and  crossgrained 
that  it  was  not  an  easy  thing  at  all  to  get  on  with 
her.  The  husband  fared  worst  of  all ;  whatever  he 
was  for,  she  was  always  against. 

So  it  happened  one  Sunday  in  summer  that  the 
man  and  the  woman  went  out  to  see  how  the  crops 
looked. 

When  they  came  to  a  cornfield  on  the  other  side 
of  the  river  the  man  said  : 

"  It's  ready  for  reaping ;  to-morrow  we  must 
begin." 

•'  Yes,  to-morrow  we  can  begin  and  clip  it,"  said 
the  woman. 

''What  is  it  you  say ?  Are  we  going  to  clip  it? 
Are  we  supposed  not  to  reap  corn  any  longer  ?"  said 
the  man. 

"  Ts"o,  it  must  be  clipped,1'  said  the  woman. 

"  There  is  nothing  so  dangerous  as  a  little  knowl 
edge,"  said  the  man;  "one  would  think  you  had 
lost  what  little  sense  you  had !  Have  you  ever 
seen  anybody  clipping  corn  ?"  said  he. 

"  Little  I  know,  and  less  I  want  to  know,"  said 
the  woman ;  "  but  this  I  do  know,  that  the  corn 


'No,  no!  It  must  be  clipped,  clipped,  clipped! "  shouted  the  woman,  clipping 
her  fingers  under  the  man's  nose.— Pag*  iL 


FAIRY    TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.  41 

shall  be  clipped  and  not  reaped."  There  was  no 
use  talking  any  more  about  that ;  clipped  it  should 
be. 

So  they  walked  on  wrangling  and  quarreling, 
till  they  came  to  the  bridge  across  the  river,  close 
to  a  deep  pool. 

"  There's  an  old  saying,"  said  the  man,  "  that 
good  tools  make  good  work ;  I  fancy  that'll  be  a 
queer  harvest  which  is  cut  with  a  pair  of  shears," 
said  he.  "Shall  we  not  settle  to  reap  the  corn, 
after  all?" 

"  No,  no !  it  must  be  clipped,  clipped,  clipped  !" 
shouted  the  woman,  jumping  up  and  clipping  her 
fingers  under  the  man's  nose. 

In  her  passion  she  forgot  to  look  where  she  was 
going,  and  all  at  once  she  stumbled  over  one  of  the 
beams  on  the  bridge  and  fell  into  the  river. 

"  Old  habits  are  hard  to  change,"  thought  the 
man,  "  but  it  would  be  a  wonder  if  I,  for  once,  got 
my  way." 

He  waded  out  into  the  pool  and  got  hold  of  her 
by  the  hair,  till  her  head  was  just  out  of  the  water. 

"  Shall  we  reap  the  corn  then  ?"  he  said. 

"  Clip,  clip,  clip !"  screamed  the  woman. 

"I'll  teach  you  to  clip,"  thought  the  man,  and 
ducked  her  under  the  water.  But  that  wasn't  of 
much  use ;  "  they  must  clip  it,"  she  said,  as  he 
brought  her  to  the  surface  again. 

"  I  do  believe  the  woman  is  crazy,"  said  the  man 
to  himself;  "many  are  mad  and  don't  know  it,  and 
many  have  sense  and  don't  use  it ;  but  I  must  try 


42        FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

once  more,  anyhow,"  said  he.  But  no  sooner  had 
he  ducked  her  under  again  than  she  held  her  hand 
above  the  water  and  began  to  clip  with  her  fingers, 
like  a  pair  of  shears.  Then  the  man  got  furious 


and  kept  her  under  so  long  that  her  hand  all  of  a 
sudden  fell  under  water,  and  the  woman  became  so 
heavy  that  he  had  to  let  go  his  hold. 

"  If  you  want  to  drag  me  down  into  the  pool  with 
you,  you  may  lie  there,  you  wretch !"  said  the  man. 
And  so  the  woman  was  drowned. 

But  after  awhile  he  thought  it  wasn't  right  that 
she  should  lie  there  and  not  be  buried  in  Christian 
soil,  so  he  went  along  the  river  and  searched  and 
dragged  for  her ;  but  for  all  his  searching  and  all  his 
dragging  he  could  not  find  her.  He  took  the  people 
on  the  farm  and  others  in  the  neighborhood  with 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.          43 

him,  and  they  began  dragging  the  river  all  the  way 
down  ;  but  for  all  the  searching  they  could  not  find 
the  woman. 

"  Well/'  said  the  man,  "  this  is  not  much  use ! 
This  woman  was  a  sort  by  herself;  while  she  was 
alive  she  was  altogether  a  contrary  one ;  and  it  is 
not  likely  she'll  be  different  now,"  he  said ;  "  we 
must  search  up  the  river  for  her,  and  try  above  the 
fall ;  perhaps  she  has  floated  upward." 

So  they  went  up  the  river  and  searched  and 
dragged  for  her  above  the  fall,  and  there,  sure 
enough,  she  lay.  That  shows  what  a  contrary 
woman  she  was ! 


THE  WOODPECKER. 


IN  those  days  when  the  saints  used 
to  wander  about  on  earth,  St.  Peter 
once  came  to  a  woman  who  was  sit 
ting  baking  oatcakes.  Her  name  was 
Gertrude,  and  she  had  a  red  cap  on 
her  head. 

As  St.  Peter  had  been  walking  a  long  distance 
and  was  hungry,  he  asked  her  for  a  bit  of  her  cake. 
Yes,  he  might  have  some,  and  she  took  a  tiny  lump 
of  dough  and  began  to  roll  it  out ;  but  it  became  so 
big  that  it  filled  the  whole  of  the  board.  No,  that 
cake  was  too  big ;  he  shouldn't  have  that  one. 

She  then  took  a  still  smaller  lump  of  dough,  bix 
when  she  had  rolled  it  out  and  put  it  on  the  slab  tc: 
bake,  that  one  also  became  too  big.  He  shouldn't 
have  that  one  either. 

The  third  time  she  took  a  still  smaller  lump,  a 
tiny  little  one ;  but  this  time  also  the  cake  became 
too  big. 

"  I  have  nothing  to  give  you,"  said  the  woman ; 
"  you  may  as  well  go  without  your  bit,  for  all  the 
cakes  are  too  big." 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.          45 

Then  St.  Peter  became  angry  and  said :  "  Because 
you  begrudge  me  such  a  trifle  you  shall  be  punished, 
and  you  shall  become  a  bird  and  seek  your  food  be 
tween  the  bark  and  the  wood  and  have  nothing  to 
drink  except  when  it  rains." 

He  had  no  sooner  said  the  last  word  than  she 
became  a  woodpecker  and  flew  from  the  hearth  up 
the  chimney.  To  this  day  you  can  see  her  flying 
about  with  her  red  cap  on  and  her  body  all  over 
black  from  the  chimney.  She  is  always  tapping 
and  pecking  at  the  trees  for  food,  and  piping  when 
it  is  going  to  rain,  for  she  is  always  thirsty  and  is 
then  waiting  for  water. 


THE  MAN'S  DAUGHTER  AND  THE 
WOMAN'S  DAUGHTER 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  were  a  man  and  a  woman 
who  got  married ;  they  had  each  a  daughter.  The 
woman's  daughter  was  lazy  and  idle  and  would 
never  do  any  work,  and  the  man's  daughter  was 
active  and  willing,  but  for  all  that  she  could  never 
please  the  stepmother,  and  both  the  woman  and 
her  daughter  would  have  liked  to  get  rid  of  her. 

One  day  they  were  sitting  by  the  well  spinning ; 
the  woman's  daughter  had  flax  to  spin,  but  the 
man's  daughter  had  nothing  else  but  bristles. 

"  You  are  always  so  clever  and  smart,'7  said  the 
woman's  daughter,  "  but  still  I'm  not  afraid  to  try 
and  see  who  can  spin  the  most." 

They  agreed  that  the  one  whose  thread  first 
broke  should  be  put  into  the  well. 

All  at  once  the  man's  daughter's  thread  broke,  so 
she  was  put  into  the  well.  But  when  she  came  to 
the  bottom  she  found  she  was  not  hurt ;  and  far  and 
wide  around  she  saw  nothing  but  a  beautiful  green 
meadow. 

She  walked  for  some  time  in  the  meadow,  till 
•he  came  to  a  hedge  which  she  had  to  climb  over. 

"Do  not  step  heavily  on  me,"  said  the  hedge, 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          47 

"and  I'll  help  you  another  time."  She  made  her 
self  as  light  as  a  feather  and  stepped  over  so 
carefully  that  she  scarcely  touched  it. 

So  she  went  on  a  bit  further,  till  she  came  to  a 
brindled  cow,  which  had  a  milk  pail  on  her  horns; 
it  was  a  fine  large  cow,  and  her  udder  was  round 
and  full  of  milk. 

"  Please  do  milk  me,"  said  the  cow,  "  for  I  am  so 
full  of  milk ;  drink  as  much  as  you  like  and  pour 
the  rest  over  my  hoofs,  and  I'll  help  you  some  other 
time." 

The  man's  daughter  did  as  the  cow  had  asked 
her;  the  moment  she.  took  hold  of  the  teats  the 
milk  squirted  into  the  pail,  then  she  drank  as  much 
as  she  could  and  the  rest  she  poured  over  the  cow's 
hoofs,  and  the  pail  she  hung  on  the  horns  again. 

When  she  had  gone  a  bit  further  she  met  a  large 
ram,  which  had  such  long  thick  wool  that  it  trailed 
along  the  ground,  and  on  one  of  his  horns  hung  a 
large  pair  of  shears. 

4k  Please  do  shear  me,"  said  the  ram,  "  for  here 
I  have  to  go  about  panting  with  all  this  wool, 
and  it  is  so  warm  I  am  almost  stifled.  Take  as 
much  wool  as  you  like  and  twist  the  rest  round  my 
neck,  and  I'll  help  you  another  time." 

She  was  quite  willing,  and  the  ram  lay  down  in 
her  lap;  he  was  so  quiet  and  she  sheared  him  so 
neatly  that  she  did  not  make  a  single  scratch  in  his 
skin.  She  then  took  as  much  as  she  wanted  of  the 
wool,  and  the  rest  she  twisted  round  the  ram's 
neck. 


48         FAIRY   TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

A  little  further  on  she  came  to  an  apple  tree, 
which  was  so  laden  with  apples  that  all  the  branches 
were  bent  to  the  ground.  Close  to  the  trunk  stood 
a  small  pole. 

"  Please  do  pluck  some  .of  my  apples,"  said  the 
tree,  "  so  that  my  branches  can  straighten  them 
selves,  for  it  is  quite  painful  to  stand  so  crooked ; 
but  be  sure  and  strike  me  gently  and  lightly,  so 
that  you  do  not  injure  me.  Eat  as  many  as  you 
like  and  place  the  rest  around  my  root,  and  I'll 
help  you  some  other  time." 

So  she  plucked  all  she  could  reach,  and  then  she 
took  the  pole  and  carefully  knocked  down  all  the 
other  apples ;  she  ate  till  she  was  satisfied,  and  the 
rest  she  placed  neatly  round  the  root. 

Then  she  walked  on  a  long,  long  way,  till  she 
came  to  a  large  farm,  where  a  troll-wife  and  her 
daughter  lived.  She  went  in  and  asked  if  they 
wanted  a  serving  maid. 

"  Oh,  it's  no  use,"  said  the  troll-wife,  "  we  have 
tried  many,  but  none  of  them  were  good  for  any 
thing."  But  she  begged  so  hard  that  at  last  they 
took  her  into  service ;  and  the  troll- wife  gave  her  a 
sieve  and  told  her  to  fetch  some  water  in  it.  She 
thought  it  was  rather  unreasonable  that  they  should 
ask  her  to  fetch  water  in  a  sieve,  but  she  went  all 
the  same,  and  when  she  came  to  the  well  the  little 
birds  were  singing : 

"Rubin  clay! 
Put  in  hay! 
Kub  in  clay! 
Put  in  hayl" 


She  went  in  to  the  troll-wife  and  asked  if  they  wanted  a  serving  maid.— Page  48. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          49 

She  did  so  and  was  then  able  to  carry  the  water 
in  the  sieve  easily  enough,  but  when  she  came  home 
with  the  water  and  the  troll-wife  saw  the  sieve,  she 
said : 

"  You  have  not  done  that  by  yourself." 

The  troll-wife  then  told  her  to  go  into  the  cow 
house  and  clean  it  out  and  then  milk  the  cows ;  but 
when  she  came  there  she  found  that  the  shovel  was 
so  big  and  heavy  she  could  not  use  it,  she  could  not 
even  lift  it.  She  did  not  know  what  to  do,  but  the 
birds  sang  to  her  that  she  should  take  the  handle  of 
the  besom  and  throw  a  little  out  with  it  and  then 
all  the  rest  would  follow. 

She  did  this  and  no  sooner  had  she  done  it  than 
the  cow-house  was  as  clean  as  if  it  had  been  cleaned, 
and  swept.  She  had  next  to  milk  the  cows,  but 
they  were  so  restless  and  kicked  and  plunged 
so  that  she  could  not  get  any  milking  done  at 
all.  Then  she  heard  the  birds  singing  outside : 

"  A  little  squirt! 
A  little  sip! 
To  little  birds!" 

She  squirted  a  little  milk  out  to  the  birds,  and 
then  all  the  cows  stood  still  and  let  her  milk  them ; 
they  neither  kicked  nor  plunged,  they  did  not  even 
lift  a  leg. 

When  the  troll-wife  saw  her  coming  in  with  the 
milk  she  said : 

"  You  have  not  done  this  by  yourself.  Now  you 
must  take  this  black  wool  and  wash  it  white." 


50        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

The  girl  did  not  know  how  she  should  get  thig 
done,  for  she  had  never  seen  any  one  who  could 
wash  black  wool  white.  But  she  said  nothing,  she 
took  the  wool  and  went  to  the  well  with  it.  The 
little  birds  sang  to  her  that  she  should  take  the 
wool  and  put  it  in  the  big  bucket  that  was  standing 
near  the  well,  and  it  would  become  white. 

"  Oh,  dear,  oh,  dear ! "  said  the  troll- wife,  when 
the  girl  came  in  with  the  wool.  "  It's  no  use  keep 
ing  you,  you  can  do  everything ;  you  will  worry  the 
life  out  of  me  in  the  end,  it  is  better  you  should  go 
your  way." 

The  troll-wife  then  brought  out  three  caskets,  a 
red,  a  green,  and  a  blue  one,  and  the  girl  might  tako 
whichever  she  liked,  and  that  was  to  be  her  wages. 
She  did  not  know  which  one  to  take,  but  the  little 
birds  sang : 

"  Take  not  the  green  I 
Take  not  the  red  ! 
But  take  the  blue  ! 
On  which  we've  put 
Three  little  crosses!" 

She  then  took  the  blue  one,  as  the  birds  had  told 
her. 

"  A  curse  upon  you,"  said  the  troll-wife ;  "  you 
will  be  sure  to  suffer  for  this." 

When  the  man's  daughter  was  going  the  troll- 
wife  threw  a  red-hot  iron  bar  after  her,  but  the  girl 
ran  behind  the  door  and  hid  herself,  so  the  bar 
missed  her,  for  the  little  birds  had  told  her  what 
to  do. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.          51 

She  set  off  as  quickly  as  she  could ;  but  when  she 
came  to  the  apple  tree  she  heard  a  rumbling  noise 
behind  her  on  the  road ;  it  was  the  troll-wife  and 
her  daughter,  who  were  after  her.  The  girl  got  so 
frightened  she  did  not  know  what  to  do  with 
herself, 

"  Come  here  to  me,"  said  the  apple  tree,  "  and  I'll 
help  you.  Hide  yourself  under  my  branches,  for  if 
they  get  hold  of  you  they  will  take  the  casket  from 
you  and  tear  you  to  pieces."  The  girl  did  so,  and 
just  then  up  came  the  troll- wife  and  her  daughter. 

"  Have  you  seen  any  girl  go  past  here  ?"  said  the 
troll- wife. 

" Oh,  yes,"  said  the  tree,  "one  ran  past  awhile 
ago ;  but  she  is  now  so  far  away  you'll  never  over 
take  her." 

The  troll- wife  then  turned  about  and  set  off 
home. 

The  girl  walked  on  a  bit ;  but  when  she  came  to 
the  ram  she  heard  the  rambling  noise  again  on  the 
road,  and  she  became  so  frightened  and  terrified 
that  she  did  not  know  what  to  do  with  herself ;  for 
she  knew  it  was  the  troll-wife  who  had  changed  her 
mind. 

"Come  here  and  I'll  help  you,"  said  the  ram. 
"  Hide  yourself  under  my  wool  and  they  won't  see 
you ;  or  else  they'll  take  the  casket  from  you  and 
tear  you  to  pieces." 

All  at  once  the  troll-wife  came  rushing  up. 

"  Have  you  seen  a  girl  go  past  here  ?"  she  asked 
the  ram. 


52          FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"  Oh,  yes,"  said  the  ram,  "I  saw  one  awhile  ago, 
but  she  ran  so  fast  that  you  will  never  overtake 
her."  So  the  troll-wife  turned  round  and  went  home. 

When  the  girl  had  got  as  far  as  the  cow  she 
heard  the  rumbling  noise  again  on  the  road. 

"  Come  here,"  said  the  cow,  "  and  I'll  help  you ; 
hide  yourself  under  my  udder,  or  else  the  troll-wife 
will  take  the  casket  from  you,  and  tear  you  to 
pieces."  Before  long  she  came. 

"  Have  you  seen  any  girl  go  past  here  ?"  said  the 
troll-wife  to  the  cow. 

"  Yes,  I  saw  one  awhile  ago,  but  she  is  far  away 
now,  for  she  was  running  so  fast  that  you  will  never 
overtake  her,"  said  the  cow.  The  troll-wife  then 
turned  round  and  went  home  again. 

When  the  girl  had  got  a  long  bit  on  the  way  and 
was  not  far  from  the  hedge,  she  heard  the  noise 
again  on  the  road ;  she  became  terribly  frightened, 
for  she  knew  it  was  the  troll-wife  who  had  come 
back  again. 

"  Come  here  and  I'll  help  you,"  said  the  hedge  ; 
"  creep  in  among  my  twigs,  and  they  won't  see  you ; 
or  else  they  will  take  the  casket  from  you  and  tear 
you  to  pieces."  She  made  haste  to  hide  herself 
among  the  twigs  of  the  hedge. 

"  Have  you  seen  any  girl  go  past  here  ?"  said  the 
troll  wife  to  the  hedge. 

"No,  I  have  not  seen  any  girl,"  said  the  hedge, 
and  it  became  so  angry  you  could  hear  it  crackle. 
Then  it  made  itself  so  big,  it  was  no  use  trying  to 
get  over  it.  There  was  no  help  for  it ;  the  troll- 
wife  had  to  turn  round  and  go  home  again. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          53 

When  the  man's  daughter  got  home  both  the 
woman  and  her  daughter  were  still  more  spiteful 
than  they  had  been  before ;  for  now  she  was  still 
more  beautiful,  and  so  grand  that  it  was  a  pleasure 
to  look  at  her.  She  was  not  allowed  to  stop  with 
them,  but  they  sent  her  to  the  pigsty,  where  she 
was  to  live.  She  then  began  to  wash  and  clean  out 
the  place,  and  then  she  opened  her  casket  to  see 
what  she  had  got  for  wages ;  when  she  opened  it 
she  found  there  was  so  much  gold  and  silver,  and 
so  many  beautiful  things  in  it,  that  both  the  walls 
and  roof  were  covered,  and  the  pigsty  became 
more  magnificent  than  the  finest  palace. 

When  the  stepmother  and  the  daughter  saw  this 
they  were  quite  beside  themselves,  and  began  to 
ask  her  what  sort  of  service  she  had  been  in. 

"  Oh,"  she  said,  "  you  can  easily  guess  since  I 
have  had  such  wages.  Such  a  mistress  to  work  for, 
and  such  people  you  will  not  easily  find !" 

The  woman's  daughter  then  wanted  to  set  out 
and  go  into  service,  so  that  she  also  might  get  such 
a  golden  casket. 

They  then  sat  down  to  spin  again;  but  this  time 
the  woman's  daughter  was  to  spin  bristles,  and  the 
man's  daughter  flax,  and  the  one  who  first  broke 
the  thread  would  be  put  into  the  well. 

Before  long  the  woman's  daughter  broke  her 
thread,  as  you  may  guess,  and  so  they  threw  her 
into  the  well. 

Everything  happened  as  before ;  she  fell  to  the 
bottom,  but  did  not  hurt  herself,  and  then  she  came 


54        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

to  a  beautiful  green  meadow.  When  she  had 
walked  a  bit  she  came  to  the  hedge. 

"  Do  not  step  heavily  on  me,  and  I  will  help  you 
another  time,"  said  the  hedge. 

"  Oh,  what  do  I  care  about  a  lot  of  twigs,"  she 
said,  and  trod  heavily  on  the  hedge,  so  that  it 
groaned. 

In  a  little  while  she  came  to  the  cow,  which 
wanted  milking  again. 

"  Please  do  milk  me,"  said  the  cow,  "  and  I  \vill 
help  you  another  time  ;  drink  as  much  as  you  like, 
and  pour  the  rest  over  my  hoofs." 

This  she  did ;  she  milked  the  cow,  and  drank  as 
long  as  she  was  able,  till  there  was  nothing  left  to 
pour  over  the  hoofs.  She  then  threw  the  pail  down 
the  hill  and  went  her  way.  When  she  had  gone  a 
bit  further  she  came  to  the  ram,  which  was  going 
about  trailing  his  wool  along  the  ground. 

"  Do  shear  me,  and  I'll  help  you  another  time," 
said  the  ram ;  "  take  as  much  of  the  wool  as  you 
like,  but  twist  the  rest  around  my  neck."  She  did 
this,  but  sheared  the  ram  so  roughly  that  she  made 
big  gashes  in  his  skin ;  and  then  she  took  all  the 
wool  away  with  her. 

In  a  little  while  she  came  to  the  apple  tree,  which 
was  quite  bent  down  under  the  weight  of  its  apples. 

"  Please  do  pluck  my  apples,  so  that  my  branches 
can  straighten  themselves,  for  it  is  painful  to  stand 
so  crooked,"  said  the  apple  tree,  "  but  be  careful  not 
to  injure  me ;  eat  as  many  as  you  like,  but  place 
the  rest  at  my  root,  and  I'll  help  you  another 
time," 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.  55 

She  plucked  some  of  the  nearest,  and  those  she 
could  not  reach  she  knocked  down  with  the  pole ; 
but  she  did  not  care  how  she  did  it.  She  tore  down 
large  branches,  and  ate  till  she  was  unable  tot  eat 
any  more ;  and  then  she  threw  the  rest  under  the 
tree. 

When  she  had  walked  a  little  way  she  came  to 
the  farm  where  the  troll- wife  lived,  and  asked  to  be 
taken  into  service.  The  troll-wife  said  she  would 
not  have  any  servant  girl,  for  either  they  were  good 
for  nothing  or  else  they  were  far  too  clever,  and 
cheated  her  of  what  she  had.  The  woman's 
daughter  did  not  give  in,  but  said  she  must  have  a 
place ;  and  then  the  troll-wife  said  she  would  take 
her,  if  she  was  good  for  anything. 

The  first  thing  she  got  to  do  was  to  fetch  water 
in  the  sieve.  She  went  to  the  well  and  poured 
water  into  the  sieve,  but  as  fast  as  she  poured  it  in 
it  ran  out.  The  birds  then  sang : 

"Rubin  clay! 
Put  in  hay ! 
Rub  in  clay! 
Put  in  hay!" 

But  she  didn't  take  any  notice  of  what  the  birds 
sang;  she  threw  the  clay  at  them,  so  that  they  flew 
away,  and  she  had  to  go  back  with  an  empty  sieve, 
and  got  scolded  by  the  troll-wife.  She  was  then 
to  clean  out  the  cowhouse  and  milk  the  cows,  but 
she  thought  she  was  too  good  for  that.  She  went 
into  the  cowhouse,  however;  and  when  she  got 


56       FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

there  she  found  she  could  not  use  the  shovel ;  it  was 
so  big.  The  birds  said  the  same  to  her  as  to  the 
man's  daughter — that  she  should  take  the  besom 
and  sweep  out  the  litter,  and  all  the  rest  would 
follow  ;  but  she  took  the  besom  and  threw  it  at  the 
birds.  When  she  was  going  to  milk  the  cows  they 
were  so  restless  that  they  kicked  and  plunged,  and 
every  time  she  had  got  a  little  in  the  pail  they 
kicked  it  over.  The  birds  sang : 

"A  little  squirt! 
A  little  sip! 
For  little  birds!" 

But  she  struck  and  beat  the  cows,  flung  and  threw 
everything  she  could. get  hold  of  at  the  birds,  and 
carried  on  in  a  way  that  was  never  heard  of.  She 
had  not,  of  course,  cleaned  the  cowhouse  or  milked 
the  cows,  so  when  she  came  in  she  got  both  blows 
and  scolding  from  the  troll-wife.  She  was  then  to 
wash  the  black  wool  white,  but  she  did  not  fare  any 
better  with  that.  The  troll-wife  thought  this  was 
too  bad,  and  so  she  brought  out  three  caskets — one 
red,  one  green,  and  one  blue — and  told  her  she  had 
no  use  for  her,  as  she  was  fit  for  nothing;  but  she 
should  have  a  casket  all  the  same  for  her  wages, 
and  could  choose  which  she  liked  best.  Then  the 
birds  sang : 

"  Take  not  the  green! 
Take  not  the  redl 
But  take  the  blue! 
Which  we  have  put 
Three  crosses  on!" 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.  5? 

She  did  not  take  any  notice  of  what  the  birds 
sang,  but  took  the  red  one,  which  was  the  gaudiest. 
So  she  set  out  on  her  way  home,  and  got  there 
without  any  trouble,  for  there  was  no  one  in  pursuit 
of  her. 

When  she  got  home  the  mother  was  greatly  re 
joiced  to  see  her,  and  they  went  at  once  into  the 
parlor  and  placed  the  casket  there,  for  they  thought 
there  was  nothing  but  gold  and  silver  in  it,  and 
they  believed  that  both  the  walls  and  the  roof 
would  be  covered  with  gold.  But  as  soon  as  they 
opened  the  casket  there  swarmed  out  of  it  vipers 
and  toads,  and  when  the  daughter  opened  her  mouth 
it  was  just  the  same ;  vipers  and  toads  and  all  sorts 
of  vermin  fell  out,  till  at  last  it  was  impossible  to 
live  in  the  same  house  with  her.  And  that  was  all 
she  got  for  serving  the  troll-wife  1 


THE   HAKE   WHO   HAD  BEEN   MAKKIED. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  a  hare  was  running  and  frisking 
about  in  a  cornfield. 

"Hurray!  hurrah!  hurray!"  he  shouted,  as  he 
jumped  and  skipped  along. 

All  of  a  sudden  he  turned  a  somersault,  and  found 
himself  standing  on  his  hind  legs  in  a  new-sown 
cornfield. 

Just  then  a  fox  came  slinking  by. 

"  Good-day,  good-day  to  you  !"  said  the  hare.  "  I 
feel  so  jolly  to-day,  for  I  have  been  married,  you 
must  know !" 

"  That's  a  good  thing  for  you,"  said  the  fox. 

"  Oh,  I  don't  know  so  much  about  that,"  said  the 
hare,  "  for  she  was  rather  a  crossgrained  creature, 
and  she  turned  out  C  regular  scold  of  a  wife,  she 
did." 

"  That  was  a  bad  thing  for  you,"  said  the  fox. 

"  Oh,  it  wasn't  so  bad,"  said  the  hare,  "  for  I  got 
a  lot  of  money  with  her,  and  she  had  a  house  of  her 
own  besides." 

"  That  was  a  very  good  thing  indeed,"  said  the 
fox. 

"  Oh,  I  don't  know  so  much  about  that,"  said  the 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          59 

hare,  "  for  the  house  got  burned  down,  and  every 
thing  we  had  along  with  it." 

"  That  was  really  too  bad,"  said  the  fox. 

"  Oh,  not  so  very  bad  after  all,"  said  the  hare, 
"  for  that  crossgrained  wife  of  mine  was  burned  as 
well." 


THE   SQUIEE'S   BKIDE. 


ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  rich  squire  who 
owned  a  large  farm,  and  had  plenty  of  silver  at  the 
bottom  of  his  chest  and  money  in  the  bank  besides ; 
but  he  felt  there  was  something  wanting,  for  he  was 
a  widower. 

One  day  the  daughter  of  a  neighboring  farmer 
was  working  for  him  in  the  hayfield.  The  squire 
saw  her  and  liked  her  very  much,  and  as  she  was  the 
child  of  poor  parents  he  thought  if  he  only  hinted 
that  he  wanted  her  she  would  be  ready  to  marry 
him  at  once. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          61 

So  he  told  her  he  had  been  thinking  of  getting 
married  again. 

"  Ay !  one  may  think  of  many  things,"  said  the 
girl,  laughing  slyly.  In  her  opinion  the  old  fellow 
ought  to  be  thinking  of  something  that  behoved 
him  better  than  getting  married. 

"  Well,  you  see,  I  thought  that  you  should  be  my 
wife!" 

"  No,  thank  you  all  the  same,"  said  she,  "  that's 
not  at  all  likely." 

The  squire  was  not  accustomed  to  be  gainsaid,  and 
the  more  she  refused  him  the  more  determined  he 
was  to  get  her. 

But  as  he  made  no  progress  in  her  favor  he  sent 
for  her  father  and  told  him  that  if  he  could  arrange 
the  matter  with  his  daughter  he  would  forgive  him 
the  money  he  had  lent  him,  and  he  would  also  give 
him  the  piece  of  land  which  lay  close  to  his  meadow 
into  the  bargain. 

"  Yes,  you  may  be  sure  I'll  bring  my  daughter  to 
her  senses,"  said  the  father.  "  She  is  only  a  child, 
and  she  doesn't  know  what's  best  for  her."  But  all 
his  coaxing  and  talking  did  not  help  matters.  She 
would  not  have  the  squire,  she  said,  if  he  sat  buried 
in  gold  up  to  his  ears. 

The  squire  waited  day  after  day,  but  at  last  he 
became  so  angry  and  impatient  that  he  told  the 
father,  if  he  expected  him  to  stand  by  his  promise, 
he  would  have  to  put  his  foot  down  and  settle  the 
matter  now,  for  he  would  not  wait  any  longer. 

The  man  knew  no  other  wav  out  of  it  but  to  let 


62          FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

the  squire  get  everything  ready  for  the  wedding ; 
and  when  the  parson  and  the  wedding  guests  had 
arrived  the  squire  should  send  for  the  girl  as  if  she 
were  wanted  for  some  work  on  the  farm.  When 
she  arrived  she  would  have  to  be  married  right 
away,  so  that  she  would  have  no  time  to  think  it 
over. 

The  squire  thought  this  was  well  and  good,  and  so 
he  began  brewing  and  baking  and  getting  ready  for 
the  wedding  in  grand  style.  When  the  guests  had 
arrived  the  squire  called  one  of  his  farm  lads  and 
told  him  to  run  down  to  his  neighbor  and  ask  him 
to  send  him  what  he  had  promised. 

"But  if  you  are  not  back  in  a  twinkling,"  he  said, 
shaking  his  fist  at  him,  "  I'll— 

He  did  not  say  more,  for  the  lad  ran  off  as  if  he 
had  been  shot  at. 

"  My  master  has  sent  me  to  ask  for  that  you 
promised  him,"  said  the  lad,  when  he  got  to  the 
neighbor,  "  but  there  is  no  time  to  be  lost,  for  he  is 
terribly  busy  to-day.." 

"  Yes,  yes !  Run  down  into  the  meadow  and 
take  her  with  you.  There  she  goes !"  answered  the 
neighbor. 

The  lad  ran  off  and  when  he  came  to  the  meadow 
he  found  the  daughter  there  raking  the  hay. 

"  I  am  to  fetch  what  your  father  has  promised 
my  master,"  said  the  lad. 

"  Ah,  ha  I"  thought  she.  "  Is  that  what  they  are 
up  to  ?" 

"Ah,  indeed!"   she  said.    "I  suppose  it's  that 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 


63 


little  bay  mare  of  ours.  You  had  better  go  and  take 
her.  She  stands  there  tethered  on  the  other  side  of 
the  peas  field,"  said  the  girl. 

The  boy  jumped  on  the  back  of  the  bay  mare  and 
rode  home  at  full  gallop. 


"  Have  you  got  her  with  you  ?"  asked  the  squire. 
"  She  is  down  at  the  door,"  said  the  lad. 
"  Take  her  up  to  the  room  my  mother  had,"  said 
the  squire. 


64          FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"  But,  master,  how  can  that  be  managed  ?"  said 
the  lad. 

"  You  must  just  do  as  I  tell  you,"  said  the  squire. 
"If  you  cannot  manage  her  alone  you  must  get  the 
men  to  help  you,"  for  he  thought  the  girl  might 
turn  obstreperous. 

When  the  lad  saw  his  master's  face  he  knew  it 
would  be  no  use  to  gainsay  him.  So  he  went  and  got 
all  the  farm-tenants  who  were  there  te  help  him. 
Some  pulled  at  the  head  and  the  forelegs  of  the 
mare  and  others  pushed  from  behind,  and  at  last 
they  got  her  up  the  stairs  and  into  the  room. 
There  lay  all  the  wedding  finery  ready. 

"  Now,  that's  done,  master !"  said  the  lad  ;  "  but 
it  was  a  terrible  job.  It  was  the  worst  I  have  ever 
had  here  on  the  farm." 

"Never  mind,  you  shall  not  have  done  it  for 
nothing,"  said  his  master.  "  Now  send  the  women 
up  to  dress  her." 

"  But  I  say,  master — !"  said  the  lad. 

"None  of  your  talk!"  said  the  squire.  "Tell 
them  they  must  dress  her  and  mind  and  not  forget 
either  wreath  or  crown." 

The  lad  run  into  the  kitchen. 

"Look  here,  lasses,"  he  said;  "you  must  go 
upstairs  and  dress  up  the  bay  mare  as  bride.  I 
expect  the  master  wants  to  give  the  guests  a  laugh." 

The  women  dressed  the  bay  mare  in  everything 
that  was  there,  and  then  the  lad  went  and  told  his 
master  that  now  she  was  ready  dressed,  with  wreath 
and  crown  and  all. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR   NORTH.          66 


"  Very  well,  bring  her  down !"  said  the  squire. 
"  I  will  receive  her  myself  at  the  door,"  said  he. 

There  was  a  terrible  clatter  on  the  stairs;  for 
that  bride,  you  know,  had  no  silken  shoes  on. 


66          FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

When  the  door  was  opened  and  the  squire's  bride 
entered  the  parlor  you  can  imagine  there  was  a 
good  deal  of  tittering  and  grinning. 

And  as  for  the  squire  you  may  be  sure  he  had 
had  enough  of  that  bride,  and  they  say  he  never 
went  courting  again. 


ALL  WOMEN  AKE  ALIKE. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  a  man  and  a  woman  were  going 
to  sow,  but  they  had  no  seed-corn  and  no  money  to 
buy  an}T  with  either.  They  had  only  one  cow  and 
this  the  man  was  to  go  to  town  with  and  sell  to  get 
money  for  the  seed-corn. 

But  when  the  time  came  the  wife  would  not  let 
the  man  go,  for  she  was  afraid  he  would  spend  the 
money  on  drink.  So  she  set  off  herself  with  the 
cow  and  took  with  her  a  hen  as  well. 

Close  to  the  town  she  met  a  butcher. 

"  Are  you  going  to  sell  that  cow,  mother  ?"  he 
asked. 

"  Yes,  that  I  am,"  she  said. 

"  How  much  do  you  want  for  it  then  ?" 

"  I  suppose  I  must  have  a  shilling  for  the  cow, 
but  the  hen  you  can  have  for  two  pounds,"  she  said. 

"Well,"  said  the  butcher.  "I  haven't  any  use  for 
the  hen,  and  you  can  easily  get  rid  of  that  when 
you  get  to  the  town,  but  I'll  give  you  a  shilling  for 
the  cow." 

She  sold  the  cow  and  got  her  shilling,  but  nobody 
in  the  town  would  give  two  pounds  for  a  tough  old 
hen.  So  she  went  back  to  the  butcher  and  said  : 

"  I  can't  get  rid  of  this  hen,  father.  You'll  have 
to  take  that  as  well  since  you  took  the  cow." 


68          FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"We'll  soon  settle  that,"  said  the  butcher,  and 
asked  her  to  sit  down.  He  gave  her  something  to 
eat  and  so  much  brandy  to  drink  that  she  became 
tipsy  and  lost  her  wits.  While  she  slept  it  off  the 
butcher  dipped  her  into  a  barrel  of  tar  and  then 
put  her  in  a  heap  of  feathers. 

When  she  woke  up  she  found  that  she  was 
feathered  all  over  and  she  began  to  wonder  :  "  Is  it 
me?  or  it  is  not  me  ?  It  must  be  a  strange  bird  ! 
But  what  shall  I  do  to  find  out  whether  it  is  me,  or 
whether  it  isn't  me  ?  Now  I  know — if  the  calves 
will  lick  me  and  the  dog  doesn't  bark  at  me,  when 
I  get  home,  then  it  is  me." 

The  dog  no  sooner  saAV  such  a  monster  than  it 
began  barking  with  all  its  might  as  if  there  were 
thieves  and  vagabonds  about  the  place. 

"  No,  surely,  it  cannot  be  me,"  she  .said. 

When  she  came  to  the  cowhouse  the  calves  would 
not  lick  her,  because  they  smelled  the  tar. 

"  No,  it  cannot  be  me  ;  it  must  be  a  strange  bird,5' 
she  said  ;  and  then  she  climbed  up  on  top  of  the 
storehouse  and  began  to  flap  with  her  arms  as  if  she 
had  wings  and  wanted  to  fly.  When  the  man  saw 
this  he  came  out  with  his  rifle  and  took  aim  at  her. 

"  Don't  shoot,  don't  shoot,"  cried  his  wife  ;  "  it  is 
me." 

"  Is  it  you  2"  said  the  man.  "  Then  don't  stand 
there  like  a  goat,  but  come  down  and  tell  me  what 
you  have  been  about." 

She  climbed  down  again,  but  found  she  had  not 
a  single  penny  left,  for  the  shilling  she  got  from  the 
butcher  she  had  lost  while  she  was  tipsy. 


Wi.'3n  the  man  saw  the  strange  figure  on  the  roof  he  came  out  with  his  rifle 
and  took  aim  at  it.— Page  68. 


70        FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

husband  on  the  head  with  a  bat;  and  over  his  head 
she  had  pulled  a  shirt  in  which  there  was  no  hole 
for  the  neck. 

"  Do  you  want  to  kill  your  husband,  mother  ?"  he 
asked. 

"No,"  she  said,  "I  only  want  to  make  a  hole  for 
the  neck  in  his  shirt." 

The  man  moaned  and  groaned  and  said :  "Oh, 
dear,  oh,  dear !  I  pity  those  who  have  to  try  on 
new  shirts.  If  any  one  could  teach  my  wife  how  to 
make  the  hole  for  the  neck  in  a  different  way,  I'd 
willingly  give  him  three  hundred  dollars." 

"  I'll  soon  do  that,"  said  the  man ;  "  only  let  me 
have  a  pair  of  scissors." 

He  got  a  pair  and  cut  the  hole,  and  then  he  took 
his  money  and  went  his  way. 

"  That  was  the  second  of  them !"  he  said  to  him 
self. 

After  a  long  while  he  came  to  a  farm,  where  he 
thought  he  would  rest  awhile,  so  he  went  in. 

"  Where  do  you  come  from  ?"  asked  the  woman. 

"  I  come  from  Ringerige,"  *  answered  the  man. 

"  Oh,  dear,  oh,  dear !  are  you  from  Himmerige  ?  f 
Then  you  must  know  Peter,  my  second  husband, 
poor  soul?"  said  the  woman.  She  had  been  married 
three  times;  the  first  and  the  last  husbands  were 
bad  men,  so  she  thought  that  the  second,  who  had 

*  A  district  in  the  south  of  Norway. 

f  "Hirnmerige,"  the  Norwegian  word  for  "heaven."  The 
similarity  between  the  two  words  "Himmerige"  und  "Ringe 
rige  "  will  easily  explain  the  mistake  made  by  the  woman. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          71 

been  a  good  husband,  was  the  only  one  likely  to  go 
to  heaven. 

"  Yes,  I  know  him  well,"  said  the  man. 

"  How  is  it  with  him  there?" asked  the  woman. 

"Oh,  things  are  rather  bad  with  him,"  said  the 
man.  "  He  knocks  about  from  place  to  place,  and 
has  neither  food  nor  clothes  to  his  back,  and  as  for 
money " 

"Goodness  gracious!"  cried  the  woman,  "there's 
no  need  that  he  should  go  about  in  such  a  plight — 
he  that  left  so  much  behind  him.  Here  is  a  large 
loft  full  of  clothes,  which  belonged  to  him,  as  well 
as  a  big  chest  of  money.  If  you'll  take  it  all  with 
you  you  shall  have  the  horse  and  trap  to  take  it  in  ; 
and  he  can  keep  both  horse  and  trap,  so  that  he  can 
drive  about  from  place  to  place ;  for  he  has  no  need 
to  walk,  I'm  sure." 

The  man  got  a  whole  cartload  of  clothes  and  a 
chest  full  of  bright  silver  dollars,  and  as  much  food 
and  drink  as  he  wanted.  When  he  had  finished  he 
got  into  the  trap  and  drove  off. 

"That's  the  third  of  them!"  he  said  to  himself. 

But  the  woman's  third  husband  was  over  in  a 
Held  plowing, and  when  he  saw  a  stranger  driving 
off  with  the  horse  and  trap  he  went  home  and 
asked  his  wife  who  it  was  who  drove  away  with  the 
horse. 

"  Oh,"  she  said,  "  that  was  a  man  from  heaven  ; 
he  said  that  Peter,  my  second,  poor,  dear  soul,  is  so 
badly  off  that  he  walks  about  there  from  place  to 
place,  and  has  neither  clothes  nor  money ;  so  I  sent 
him  all  his  old  clothes,  which  have  been  hanging 


72       FAIRY    TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

here  ever  since,  and  the  old  money  chest  with  the 
silver  dollars." 

The  man  understood  at  once  what  all  this  meant, 
and  saddled  a  horse  and  set  off  at  full  gallop. 

Before  long  he  was  close  behind  the  man  in  the 
trap ;  who  when  he  discovered  he  was  pursued, 
drove  the  horse  and  trap  into  a  thick  part  of  the 
wood,  pulled  a  handful  of  Vir  out  of  the  horse's 
tail,  and  sprang  up  a  hill,  where  he  tied  the  horse's 
hair  to  a  birch  tree,  and  lay  down  on  his  back  under 
it,  gaping  and  staring  up  into  the  clouds. 

"  Oh,  dear,  oh,  dear,  oh,  dear !"  he  said,  as  if  talk 
ing  to  himself,  when  the  woman's  third  husband 
came  riding  up.  "  We'll,  I've  never  seen  an}7 thing  so 
wonderful !  I've  never  seen  the  like  of  it !" 

The  husband  stopped  and  looked  at  him  for 
awhile  and  wondered  if  the  man  was  crazy,  or  what 
he  was  up  to.  At  last  he  asked  him : 

"  What  are  you  staring  at  ?" 

"  Well,  I  never  saw  the  like !"  exclaimed  the  man. 
"I've  just  seen  some  one  driving  straight  into 
heaven,  horse  and  all !  There,  you  see  part  of  the 
horse's  tail  hanging  on  the  birch  tree,  and  up  among 
the  clouds  you  can  see  the  horse." 

The  husban%  looked  up  at  the  clouds  and  then  at 
him  and  said  : 

"  I  don't  see  anything  but  the  horse  hair  on  the 
birch  tree." 

"  No,  of  course  you  can't  see  it,  where  you  stand," 
said  the  man,  "  but  come  and  lie  down  here  and 
look  straight  up ;  you  must  not  take  your  eyes  away 
from  the  clouds." 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.  73 

"While  the  husband  lay  staring  into  the  sky  till 
the  water  ran  from  his  eyes,  the  man  jumped  on 
the  horse  and  set  off,  both  with  that  and  the  horse 
and  trap. 

When  the  husband  heard  the  rumbling  noise  on 
the  road  he  jumped  up,  but  was  so  bewildered  be 
cause  the  man  had  gone  off  with  his  horses  that  he 
did  not  think  of  setting  after  him  till  it  was  too 
late.  He  did  not  feel  very  proud,  as  you  can 
imagine,  when  he  came  home  to  his  wife,  and  when 
she  asked  him  what  he  had  done  with  the  horse  he 
said: 

"  Oh,  I  told  the  man  he  could  take  that  with  him 
as  well  to  Peter,  for  I  did  not  think  it  was  right 
that  he  should  jolt  about  in  a  trap  up  there ;  now 
he  can  sell  the  trap  and  buy  a  carriage." 

"  Oh,  thank  you  for  that !  never  did  I  think  you 
were  such  a  kind  husband,"  said  the  woman. 

When  the  man  who  had  got  the  six  hundred  dollars 
and  the  cartload  of  clothes  and  money  came  home, 
he  saw  that  all  the  fields  were  plowed  and  sown. 
The  first  thing  he  asked  his  wife  was  where  she 
got  the  seed  corn  from. 

"  Oh,"  said  she,  "  I  have  always  h^^rd  that  he 
who  sows  something  gets  something.  So  I  sowed 
the  salt  which  the  carrier  left  here  the  other  day, 
and  if  we  only  get  rain  soon,  I  think  it  will  grow 
up  nicely.7' 

"  Mad  you  are,  and  mad  you'll  be  as  long  as  you 
live,"  said  the  man;  but  it  doesn't  much  matter,  for 
the  others  are  no  better  than  you." 


ONE'S  OWN 
CHILDREN 
AEE  ALWAYS 
THE 
PRETTIEST. 

ONCE  upon  a 
time  a  man  went 
oat  shooting  in  a 
forest,  and  there 
he  met  a  wood 
cock. 

"  Pray,  don't 
shoot  my  child 
ren,"  said  the 
woodcock. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.         75 

"  What  are  your  children  like  ?"  asked  the  man. 

"  Mine  are  the  prettiest  children  in  the  forest," 
answered  the  woodcock. 

"  I  suppose  I  mustn't  shoot  them  then,"  said  the 
man. 

When  he  came  back  he  carried  in  his  hand  a 
whole  string  of  young  woodcocks  which  he  had 
shot. 

"  Oh,  dear,  oh,  dear !  Why,  you  have  shot  my 
children  after  all!"  said  the  woodcock. 

"  Are  these  yours  ?"  said  the  man.  "  Why,  I  shot 
the  ugliest  I  could  find. 

"  Yes,  yes,"  answered  the  woodcock ;  "  but  don't 
you  know  that  every  one  thinks  one's  own  children 
the  prettiest?" 


OLD   FATHEE  BKUIN 


THE  WOLF  PIT. 


THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  man  who  lived  far 
away  in  the  wood.  He  had  many  sheep  and  goats, 
but  he  could  never  keep  the  wolf  away  from  them. 

"  I'll  be  even  with  you  yet,  Master  Greylegs,"  he 
said  at  last,  and  began  to  dig  a  pit  for  the  wolf. 
When  he  had  dug  it  deep  enough  he  placed  a  pole 
in  the  middle  of  the  pit  and  on  the  top  of  the  pole 
he  fixed  a  board,  and  on  the  board  he  put  a  little 
dog.  He  then  placed  some  twigs  and  branches 
across  the  pit,  and  on  top  of  all  he  sprinkled  some 
snow,  so  that  the  wolf  should  not  see  there  was  a 
trap  underneath.  When  the  night  came  the  little 
dog  got  tired  of  being  there. 

"  Bow-wow-wow  !"  it  barked  at  the  moon. 

A  fox  just  then  came  slinking  along,  and  thought 
here  was  a  fine  chance.  He  made  a  spring  and  fell 
plump  into  the  pit. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          77 

As  the  night  wore  on  the  little  dog  became  so 
weary  and  hungry  that  it  began  to  whine  and  bark. 

"  Bow-wow-wow,"  it  barked. 

All  at  once  a  wolf  came  slouching  along.  He 
thought  here  is  a  fat  little  morsel,  and  sprang  plump 
into  the  pit. 

Early  in  the  gray  morning  the  north  wind  began 
to  blow,  and  it  became  so  cold  that  the  little  dog 
shivered  and  trembled,  and  was  so  weary  and 
hungry. 

"  Bow-wow-wow,"  it  went  on  barking  all  the 
time. 

A  bear  then  came  trudging  along,  and  thought 
here  was  a  nice  tit-bit  early  in  the  morning ;  so  he 
stepped  out  on  the  branches  and  fell  plump  into  the 
pit. 

As  the  morning  wore  on  there  came  an  old  beg 
gar  woman  who  was  tramping  about  from  place  to 
place  with  a  bag  on  her  back.  When  she  saw  the 
little  dog  standing  there  barking  she  thought  she 
would  go  and  see  if  any  animals  had  been  caught 
in  the  trap  during  the  night.  She  went  down  on 
her  knees  and  peered  into  the  pit. 

"  So  you  have  been  caught,  Master  Reynard,  have 
you?"  she  said  to  the  fox,  for  she  saw  him  first; 
"  serves  you  right,  you  old  hen-thief.  And  you 
there  too,  are  you,  Master  Greylegs  ?"  said  she  to 
the  wolf.  "  Well,  you  have  killed  goats  and  sheep 
enough  in  your  time,  and  now  you'll  suffer  for  it 
and  get  what  you  deserve.  Halloo,  Father  Bruin, 
are  you  in  this  nice  little  parlor  too.  you  old  horse 


78         FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

thief  ?  We  will  cut  you  up  and  flay  you,  we  will, 
and  your  skull  we  will  nail  up  on  the  cowhouse," 
shouted  the  woman  excitedly,  and  shook  her  fists 
at  the  bear;  but  just  then  her  bag  slipped  forward 
over  her  head,  and  the  woman  tumbled  plump  into 
the  pit.  There  they  sat  staring  at  one  another,  all 
four  of  them,  each  in  their  corner — the  fox  in  one, 
the  wolf  in  the  other,  the  bear  in  the  third,  and  the 
old  woman  in  the  fourth. 

When  it  became  full  daylight  Reynard  began  to 
shake  himself  and  whisk  about,  for  he  thought  he 
might  as  well  try  to  get  out ;  but  the  old  woman 
said: 

"  Can't  you  sit  quiet,  you  old  roost-robber,  and 
not  go  frisking  and  trailing  about  in  this  way  ? 
Look  at  old  Father  Bruin ;  he  sits  as  quiet  as  a  par 
son  in  his  study ;"  for  she  thought  she  had  better 
make  friends  with  the  bear. 

Then  came  the  man  who  had  set  the  trap  for  the 
wolf.  First  of  all  he  dragged  up  the  old  woman, 
and  then  he  killed  all  the  animals ;  he  spared 
neither  old  Father  Bruin,  nor  Grey  legs,  nor  Rey 
nard,  the  hen  thief.  The  man  thought  he  had 
made  a  good  haul  that  night. 


THE  DOLL  IN  THE  GKASS. 


ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  king  who  had 
twelve  sons.  When  they  were  grown  up  he  told 
them  they  must  go  out  into  the  world  and  find 
themselves  wives,  who  must  all  be  able  to  spin  and 
weave  and  make  a  shirt  in  one  day,  else  he  would 
not  have  them  for  daughters-in-law.  He  gave  each 
of  his  sons  a  horse  and  a  new  suit  of  armor,  and  so 
they  set  out  in  the  world  to  look  for  wives. 

When  they  had  traveled  a  bit  on  the  way  they 
said  they  would  not  take  Ashiepattle  with  them, 
for  he  was  good  for  nothing.  Ashiepattle  must 
stop  behind  ;  there  was  no  help  for  it.  He  did  not 
know  what  he  should  do  or  which  way  he  should 
turn ;  he  became  so  sad  that  he  got  off  the  horse 
and  sat  down  on  the  grass  and  began  to  cry. 

When   he   had   sat  awhile  one    of   the  tussocks 


80          FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

among  the  grass  began  to  move,  and  out  of  it  came 
a  small  white  figure;  as  it  came  nearer  Ashiepattle 
saw  that  it  was  a  beautiful  little  girl,  but  she  was 
so  tiny,  so  very,  very  tiny. 

She  went  up  to  him  and  asked  him  if  he  would 
come  below  and  pay  a  visit  to  the  doll  in  the  grass. 

Yes,  that  he  would  ;  and  so  he  did.  When  he 
came  down  below  the  doll  in  the  grass  was  sitting 
in  a  chair  dressed  very  finely  and  looking  still  more 
beautiful.  She  asked  Ashiepattle  where  he  was 
going  and  what  was  his  errand. 

He  told  her  they  were  twelve  brothers,  and  that 
the  king  had  given  them  each  a  horse  and  a  suit  of 
armor,  and  told  them  to  go  out  in  the  world  and 
find  themselves  wives,  but  they  must  all  be  able  to 
spin  and  weave  and  make  a  shirt  in  a  day. 

"  If  you  can  do  that  and  will  become  my  wife,  I 
will  not  travel  any  further,"  said  Ashiepattle  to  the 
doll  in  the  grass. 

Yes,  that  she  would,  and  she  set  to  work  at  once 
to  get  the  shirt  spun,  woven  and  made ;  but  it  was 
so  tiny,  so  very,  very  tiny,  no  bigger  than — so  ! 

Ashiepattle  then  returned  home,  taking  the  shirt 
with  him ;  but  when  he  brought  it  out  he  felt  very 
shy  because  it  was  so  small.  But  the  king  said  he 
could  have  her  for  all  that,  and  you  can  imagine 
how  happy  and  joyful  Ashiepattle  became. 

The  road  did  not  seem  long  to  him  as  he  set  out 
to  fetch  his  little  sweetheart.  When  he  came  to  the 
doll  in  the  grass  he  wanted  her  to  sit  with  him  on 
his  horse;  but  no,  that  she  wouldn't ;  she  said  she 


A  •mall  white  figure  cama  out  of  one  of  the  tussocks  among  the  grass. — Page  80, 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.          81 

would  sit  and  drive  in  a  silver  spoon,  and  she  had 
two  small  white  horses  which  would  draw  her.  So 
they  set  out,  he  on  his  horse  and  she  in  the  silver 
spoon ;  and  the  horses  which  drew  her  were  two 
small  white  mice. 

Ashiepattle  always  kept  to  one  side  of  the  road, 
for  he  was  so  afraid  he  should  ride  over  her ;  she 
was  so  very,  very  tiny. 

When  they  had  traveled  a  bit  on  the  way  they 
came  to  a  large  lake ;  there  Ashiepattle's  horse 
took  fright  and  shied  over  to  the  other  side  of  the 
road,  and  upset  the  spoon,  so  that  the  doll  in  the 
grass  fell  into  the  water.  Ashiepattle  became  very 
sacl,  for  he  did  not  know  how  he  should  get  her  out 
again  ;  but  after  awhile  a  merman  brought  her  up. 
But  now  she  had  become  just  as  big  as  any  other 
grown-up  being  and  was  much  more  beautiful  than 
she  was  before.  So  he  placed  her  in  front  of  him 
on  the  horse  and  rode  home. 

When  Ashiepattle  got  there  all  his  brothers  had 
also  returned,  each  with  a  sweetheart ;  but  they 
were  so  ugly  and  ill-favored  and  bad-tempered  that 
they  had  come  to  blows  with  their  sweethearts  on 
their  way  home.  On  their  heads  they  had  hats 
which  were  painted  with  tar  and  soot,  and  this  had 
run  from  their  hats  down  their  faces,  so  that  they 
were  still  uglier  and  more  ill-favored  to  behold. 

When  the  brothers  saw  Ashiepattle' s  sweetheart 
they  all  became  envious  of  him,  but  the  king  was 
so  pleased  with  Ashiepattle  and  his  sweetheart  that 
he  drove  all  the  others  away,  and  so  Ashiepattle 


82        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

was  married  to  the  doll  in 
the  grass;  and  afterward 
they  lived  happy  and  com 
fortable  for  a  long,  long 
while ;  and  if  they  are  not 
dead,  they  must  be  still 
alive. 


THE  HEN  WHO 
WENT  TO 
DOVKEFJELD  TO 
SAVE  THE  WORLD. 

THERE  was  once  upon 
a  time  a  hen,  which  flew 
up  in  an  oak  tree  and 
perched  there  for  the 
night.  Before  long  she 
dreamed  that  if  she  did 
not  go  to  Dovrefjeld 
the  world  would  come 
to  an  end.  All  of  a 
mdden  she  jumped 
down  and  set  out  on 
the  road. 


84         FAIRY    TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

"When  she  had  gone  a  bit  she  met  a  cock. 

"  Good-day,  Cocky  Locky  !"  said  the  hen. 

"  Good-day,  Henny  Penny  !  where  are  you  going 
so  early  ?"  said  the  cock. 

"  Oh,  I  am  going  to  Dovref  jeld,  so  that  the  world 
shan't  come  to  an  end,"  said  the  hen. 

"  Who  told  you  that,  Henny  Penny  ?"  said  the 
cock. 

"  I  sat  in  the  oak  and  dreamed  it  last  night,"  said 
the  hen. 

"  I'll  go  with  you,"  said  the  cock.  So  they  went 
a  long  way,  till  they  met  a  duck. 

"  Good-day,  Ducky  Lucky  !"  said  the  cock. 

"  Good-day,  Cocky  Locky  !  where  are  you  going 
so  early  ?"  said  the  duck. 

"  I  am  going  to  Dovref  jeld,  so  that  the  world 
shan't  come  to  an  end,"  said  the  cock. 

"  Who  told  you  that,  Cocky  Locky  ?" 

"  Henny  Penny  !"  said  the  cock. 

"  Who  told  you  that,  Henny  Penny  ?"  said  the 
duck. 

"  I  sat  in  the  oak  and  dreamed  it  last  night,"  said 
the  hen. 

"  I'll  go  with  you  !"  said  the  duck.  So  they  set 
off  and  walked  a  bit  till  they  met  a  gander. 

"  Good-day,  Gandy  Pandy !"  said  the  duck. 

"  Good-day,  Ducky  Lucky !"  said  the  gander. 
"  Where  are  you  going  so  early  ?" 

"  I  am  going  to  Dovref  jeld,  so  that  the  world 
shan't  come  to  an  end,"  said  the  duck. 

"Who  told  you  that.  Ducky  Lucky?"  said  the 
gander. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.          85 

"  Cocky  Locky  !" 

"  Who  told  you  that,  Cocky  Locky  ?" 

"  Henny  Penny  !" 

"  How  do  you  know  that,  Henny  Penny  ?"  said 
the  gander. 

"  I  sat  in  the  oak  and  dreamed  it  last  night,  Gandy 
Pandy,"  said  the  hen. 

"  I'll  go  with  you  !"  said  the  gander.  When  they 
had  gone  on  a  bit,  they  met  a  fox. 

"  Good-day,  Foxy  Woxy  !"  said  the  gander. 

"  Good-day,  Gandy  Pandy  !" 

"  Where  are  you  going,  Foxy  Woxy  ?" 

"  Where  are  you  going,  Gandy  Pandy  ?" 

"I'm  going  to  Dovrefjeld  so  that  the  world 
shan't  come  to  an  end,"  said  the  gander. 

"  Who  told  you  that,  Gandy  Pandy  ?"  said  the 
fox. 

"  Ducky  Lucky !" 

"  Who  told  you  that,  Lucky  Ducky  ?" 

"  Cocky  Locky  !" 

"  Who  told  you  that,  Cocky  Locky?" 

"  Henny  Penny !" 

"  How  do  you  know  that,  Henny  Penny  ?" 

"  I  sat  in  the  oak  and  dreamed  last  night  that  if  we 
don't  go  to  Dovrefjeld  the  world  will  come  to  an 
end,"  said  the  hen. 

"  Oh,  nonsense !"  said  the  fox,  "  the  world  won't 
come  to  an  end  if  you  don't  get  there.  No,  come 
home  with  me  to  my  den ;  that's  much  better,  for 
there  it  is  cozy  and  comfortable." 

So  they  followed  the  fox  home  to  his  den,  and 


86        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

when  they  came  there  the  fox  put  so  much  wood  on 
the  fire  that  they  all  became  sleepy ;  the  duck  and 
the  gander  settled  in  a  corner,  but  the  cock  and  the 
hen  perched  on  a  pole.  As  soon  as  the  gander  and 
the  duck  were  asleep  the  fox  seized  the  gander  and 
put  it  on  the  fire  and  roasted  it.  The  hen  thought 
she  smelled  something  burning,  she  jumped  up  to  a 
higher  perch  and  said,  half-asleep : 

"  Faugh !     How  it  stinks  here !" 

"  Oh,  nonsense,"  said  the  fox,  "  it  is  only  the 
smoke  coming  down  the  chimney  ;  go  to  sleep  and 
shut  your  mouth."  So  the  hen  went  to  sleep.  No 
sooner  had  the  fox  eaten  the  gander  than  he  seized 
the  duck ;  he  took  it  and  put  it  on  the  fire  and 
roasted  it  and  then  set  about  to  eat  it.  The  hen 
then  woke  up  again  and  flew  up  to  a  still  higher 
perch. 

"  Faugh !  How  it  stinks  here,"  she  said,  and 
when  she  opened  her  eyes  and  saw  that  the  fox  had 
eaten  both  the  gander  and  the  duck  she  flew  up  to 
the  highest  perch  and  settled  there  and  looked  up 
through  the  chimney. 

"Just  look  at  all  the  fine  geese  flying  over 
there!"  she  said  to  the  fox. 

Reynard  ran  out,  thinking  to  find  another  fat 
roast.  In  the  meantime  the  hen  woke  up  the  cock 
and  told  him  what  had  happened  to  Gandy  Pandy 
and  Ducky  Lucky. 

So  Cocky  Locky  and  Henny  Penny  flew  up 
through  the  chimney,  and  if  they  hadn't  got  to 
Dovref  jeld  the  world  would  surely  have  come  to  an 
end! 


SQUIKE  PETEK. 

THEBE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  poor  couple  who 
had  nothing  in  the  world  but  three  sons.  What 
the  two  eldest  were  called  I  don't  know,  but  the 
youngest  was  called  Peter. 

When  the  parents  died  the  children  were  to  have 
all  they  left  behind ;  but  there  was  nothing  but  a 
porridge  pot,  a  gridiron  and  a  cat.  The  eldest,  who 
was  to  have  the  best,  took  the  pot. 


88       FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

"  Every  time  I  lend  the  pot  I  shall  get  the  scrap 
ings,"  he  said. 

The  second  took  the  gridiron. 

"  For  when  I  lend  it  I  shall  get  a  bit  to  taste," 
said  he. 

But  there  was  no  choice  for  the  youngest ;  if  he 
wanted  anything  he  would  have  to  take  the  cat. 

"  If  I  lend  the  cat  to  any  one  I  shall  get  nothing 
for  it,"  he  said  ;  "  if  the  cat  gets  a  little  milk  she'll 
want  it  herself,  but  I'll  take  her  with  me  anyhow; 
it's  a  pity  she  should  be  left  behind  to  pine." 

So  the  brothers  set  out  into  the  world  to  try  their 
fortune,  and  each  went  his  own  way.  When  the 
youngest  had  gone  awhile  the  cat  said : 

"  You'll  not  be  sorry  you  didn't  leave  me  behind. 
I'll  now  go  into  the  forest  and  fetch  some  fine 
animal  which  you  must  take  to  the  king's  palace 
you  see  yonder,  and  say  to  the  king  you  have  come 
with  a  small  present  for  him.  When  he  asks  who 
it  is  from  you  must  say  it  is  from  Squire  Peter." 

Peter  had  not  long  to  wait  before  the  cat  came 
back  with  a  reindeer  from  the  forest ;  she  had 
jumped  upon  its  head,  and  when  she  had  settled 
herself  between  its  horns  she  said :  "  If  you  don't 
go  straight  to  the  king's  palace  I  shall  scratch  your 
eyes  out."  The  reindeer  dared  not  do  otherwise. 

When  Peter  came  to  the  palace  he  went  into  the 
kitchen  with  the  reindeer  and  said : 

"  I  have  come  with  a  small  present  for  the  king, 
which  I  hope  he  will  accept." 

The  king  came  out  into  the  kitchen  and  when  he 
saw  the  big  fine  reindeer  he  was  much  pleased. 


FAIRY    TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          89 

"  But,  dear  friend  !  who  is  it  that  sends  me  such 
a  fine  present  ?"  said  the  king. 

"  Oh,  it's  Squire  Peter !"  said  the  lad. 

"  Squire  Peter !"  said  the  king.  "  Ah,  let  me  see, 
where  is  it  he  lives  ?"  for  he  thought  it  was  a  shame 
he  should  not  know  such  a  worthy  man. 

But  the  lad  would  not  tell  him.  He  dared  not 
for  his  master,  he  said. 

So  the  king  gave  Peter  some  money  and  asked 
him  to  give  his  master  his  greetings  and  many 
thanks  for  the  present. 

The  next  day  the  cat  went  into  the  forest  again 
and  jumped  up  on  the  head  of  a  stag,  settled  herself 
between  its  eyes  and  compelled  it  to  go  to  the 
palace.  Peter  again  went  into  the  kitchen  with  it 
and  said  he  came  with  a  small  present  for  the  king 
if  he  would  accept  it.  The  king  was  still  more 
pleased  with  the  stag  than  with  the  reindeer,  and 
asked  again  who  it  was  that  had  sent  him  such  a  fine 
present. 

"  Oh,  it's  Squire  Peter,"  said  the  lad ;  but  when 
the  king  wanted  to  know  where  Squire  Peter  lived 
he  got  the  same  answer  as  the  day  before.  This 
time  he  gave  Peter  still  more  money. 

The  third  day  the  cat  brought  an  elk.  When 
Peter  came  into  the  kitchen  at  the  palace  he  said 
that  he  had  a  small  present  for  the  king  if  he  would 
accept  it.  The  king  came  out  at  once  into  the 
kitchen,  and  when  he  saw  the  fine,  big  elk  he 
became  so  pleased  he  did  not  know  which  leg  to 
stand  upon.  That  time  he  gave  Peter  much  more 
money ;  it  must  have  been  a  hundred  dollars. 


90         FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

The  king  was  now  most  anxious  to  know  where 

Squire  Peter  lived  and  began  questioning  him  back- 

,  ward  and  forward,  but  the  lad  said  he  dared  not 

tell  him,  for  his  master  had  given  him  strict  orders 

not  to  disclose  it. 

"  Well,  ask  Squire  Peter  to  pay  me  a  visit  then," 
said  the  king. 

"  Yes,  he  would  do  that,"  said  the  lad,  bat  when 
he  came  out  of  the  palace  and  met  the  cat,  Peter 
said: 

"  You  have  got  me  into  a  fine  scrape ;  the  king 
now  says  I  must  visit  him  and  I  have  nothing  but 
the  rags  I  walk  in." 

"  Oh,  don't  trouble  about  that,"  said  the  cat.  "  In 
three  days  you  shall  have  coach  and  horses  and  fine 
clothes  with  gold  trimmings  and  hangings,  and  then 
you  can  surely  visit  the  king.  But  whatever  you 
see  at  the  palace  you  must  say  you  have  grander 
and  finer  things  at  home;  you  must  not  forget 
that." 

]S"o,  he  would  be  sure  to  remember,  said  Peter. 

When  the  three  days  were  over  the  cat  came 
with  the  coach  and  horses  and  clothes  and  every 
thing  that  Peter  wanted ;  all  was  so  grand  that  no 
one  had  seen  anything  like  it  before.  So  Peter  set 
out  for  the  palace  and  the  cat  ran  alongside  him. 

The  king  received  him  well,  but  whatever  he 
offered  him  and  whatever  he  showed  him  Peter 
said  it  was  all  very  well,  but  he  had  everything 
finer  and  grander  at  home.  The  king  was  not  over 
pleased  at  this,  but  Peter  went  on  just  the  same  and 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.          91 

at  last  the  king  became  so  angry  that  he  could  no 
longer  contain  himself. 

"  I'll  go  home  with  you,"  said  the  king,  "  and  see 
if  it  is  true  that  you  have  everything  so  much 
grander  and  finer;  but  if  you  have  not  told  the 
truth  it  will  be  the  worse  for  you.  I'll  say  no 
more !" 

"  You  have  got  me  into  a  fine  scrape  this  time," 
said  Peter  to  the  cat;  "the  king  now  wants  to  go 
home  with  me,  but  it  will  not  be  an  easy  thing  to 
find  my  home." 

"  Oh,  don't  trouble  about  that,"  said  the  cat,  "  I 
will  run  on  in  front  and  you  need  only  follow  me." 

So  they  set  off.  Peter  followed  the  cat,  who  ran 
on  in  front,  and  then  came  the  king  with  all  his 
suite.  When  they  had  driven  a  good  bit  on  the  way 
they  came  to  a  large  flock  of  fine  sheep ;  the  wool 
was  so  long  it  almost  reached  to  the  ground. 

"  If  you  will  say  that  the  sheep  belong  to  Squire 
Peter  when  the  king  asks,  you  shall  have  this  silver 
spoon,"  said  the  cat  to  the  herdsboy.  She  had 
taken  the  spoon  with  her  from  the  palace.  Yes,  he 
would  willingly  do  that,  said  the  herdsboy. 

When  the  king  came  by  he  said: 

"I've  never  seen  such  a  fine  flock  of  sheep !  To 
whom  do  they  belong,  my  little  boy  ?" 

"Oh,  they  belong  to  Squire  Peter,"  said  the  boy. 

In  a  little  while  they  came  to  a  great  big  herd  of 
fine  brindled  cows ;  they  were  so  fat  that  their  hides 
glistened. 

"If  you  will  say  the  cattle  belong  to  Squire  Peter 


92        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

when  the  king  asks, you  shall  have  this  silver  ladle," 
said  the. cat  to  the  cow-girl.  The  silver  ladle  she 
had  also  taken  with  her  from  the  palace. 

"  Yes,*  that  I  will,"  said  the  girl.  "When  the  king 
came  up,  he  was  quite  surprised  at  the  fine  big 
cattle,  for  such  a  herd  he  thought  he  had  never  seen 


before;  and  so  he  asked  the  girl  to  whom  those 
brindled  cows  belonged. 

"  Oh,  they  are  Squire  Peter's !"  said  the  girl. 

So  they  traveled  on, again,  and  then  they  came 
to  a  great  big  drove  of  horses.  They  were  the 
finest  one  could  see,  big  and  sleek,  and  six  of  each 
color,  both  brown  and  red,  and  cream-colored. 

"If  you  will  say  those  horses  belong  to  Squire 
Peter  when  the  king  asks,  I'll  give  you  this  silver 
goblet,"  said  the  cat  to  the  boy.  The  goblet  she 
had  also  taken  from  the  palace. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.  93 

"  Yes,  that  I  will,"  said  the  boy.  When  the  king 
came  by,  he  became  quite  dazed  at  the  fine  drove  of 
horses,  for  he  had  never  seen  the  like  of  such  horses, 
he  said.  He  then  asked  the  boy  to  whom  those 
brown,  red,  and  cream-colored  horses  belonged. 

"  Oh,  they  are  Squire  Peter's !"  said  the  boy. 

"When  they  had  traveled  a  long,  long  way,  they 
came  to  a  castle.  First  there  was  a  gateway  of 
brass,  then  one  of  silver,  and  then  one  of  gold.  The 
castle  itself  was  of  silver,  and  glistened  so  brightly 
that  it  made  one's  eyes  smart,  for  the  sun  was  shin 
ing  full  upon  it  when  they  arrived. 

They  entered,  and  the  cat  told  Peter  to  say  he 
lived  there.  Inside  the  castle  was  still  more  splen 
did  than  outside ;  everything  was  of  gold,  both 
chairs  and  tables  and  benches.  When  the  king  had 
been  round  and  seen  it  all  from  top  to  bottom,  he 
became  quite  confounded. 

"  Yes,  Squire  Peter  is  much  grander  than  I ; 
there  is  no  use  denying  that,"  he  said  ;  and  then  he 
wanted  to  return  home.  But  Peter  asked  him  to 
stop  and  sup  with  him,  which  the  king  agreed  to ; 
but  he  was  cross  and  peevish  the  whole  time. 
While  they  sat  at  table. the  troll,  who  owned  the 
castle,  came  and  knocked  at  the  gate. 

"Who  eats  my  food  and  drinks  my  mead  in 
there  ?"  he  cried.  As  soon  as  the  cat  heard  him  she 
ran  to  the  gate. 

"  Wait  a  little,  and  I'll  tell  you  how  the  farmer 
gets  his  winter  rye,"  said  the  cat.  "  First  he  plows 
his  field,  and  then  he  manures  it,  and  then  he  plows 
it  again ;"  and  so  the  cat  went  on  till  the  sun  rose. 


94       FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

,  "Just  look  behind  at  that  beautiful  damsel!" 
said  the  cat  to  the  troll.  The  troll  then  turned 
round,  and  when  he  saw  the  sun  he  burst. 

"All  this  is  now  yours,"  said  the  cat  to  Squire 
Peter.  "And  now  you  must  cut  my  head  off ;  it  is 
the  only  thing  I  ask  for  all  I  have  done  for  you." 

"  No,"  said  Squire  Peter,  "  that  I  will  not  do." 

"  You  must,"  said  the  cat,  "  or  I'll  scratch  your 
eyes  out." 

Squire  Peter  was  then  obliged  to  do  it,  although 
he  was  very  loath.  He  cut  the  cat's  head  off,  and 
the  same  moment  she  became  the  most  beautiful 
princess  any  one  could  set  eyes  on,  and  Squire  Peter 
fell  in  love  with  her  then  and  there. 

"  All  this  splendor  has  formerly  been  mine,"  said 
the  princess,  "  but  the  troll  got  me  into  his  power 
and  turned  me  into  a  cat,  and  ever  since  I  have  been 
at  your  parents'.  You  must  now  do  as  you  like 
about  making  me  your  queen,  for  you  are  king  over 
the  whole  realm,"  said  the  princess. 

Squire  Peter  was,  of  course,  only  too  glad  to  make 
her  his  queen.  So  the  wedding  took  place,  and  the 
feasting  lasted  for  eight  days.  And  as  I  did  not 
stay  any  longer  with  the  squire  and  his  queen  I 
cannot  tell  you  any  more  about  them. 


BTKD  DAUNTLESS. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  king  who  had 
twelve  daughters,  and  he  loved  them  so  much  that 
he  never  allowed  them  out  of  his  sight ;  but  every 
day  after  dinner,  while  the  king  slept,  the  princesses 
went  out  for  a  walk.  Once,  when  the  king  was 
having  his  afternoon  nap,  the  princesses  went  out  as 
usual ;  but  they  never  returned. 

The  whole  country  mourned,  but  the  king  was 
the  one  who  sorrowed  most.  Messengers  were 
sent  out  to  search  for  them,  both  in  his  own  and  in 
foreign  countries ;  proclamations  were  read  out  in 
all  the  churches,  and  the  bells  were  rung  all  over 


96        FAIRY    TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

the  country.  But  they  had  disappeared  and  left  no 
trace  behind,  so  the  people  at  last  guessed  that  they 
had  been  spirited  away  into  the  mountains. 

It  did  not  take  long  before  this  was  known  far-and 
wide,  in  town  and  country ;  yea,  even  in  the  very 
depth  of  the  country  and  in  foreign  lands.  And  so 
the  report  reached  the  ears  of  a  king  in  a  far  away 
country,  who  had  twelve  sons. 

When  they  heard  about  the  twelve  princesses 
they  asked  for  leave  to  set  out  and  find  them.  The 
king  did  not  much  like  them  to  go ;  he  was  afraid 
he  should  never  see  them  again.  But  they  went  on 
their  knees  before  him,  and  prayed  so  long  that  the 
king  at  last  gave  his  consent. 

He  fitted  out  a  ship  for  them  and  gave  them  a 
knight  called  Redbeard  as  steersman,  for  he  was  a 
good  seaman.  The}7  sailed  about  for  a  very  long 
time  and  visited  all  the  countries  they  came  near, 
and  asked  and  searched  for  the  princesses,  but  they 
got  no  tidings  whatever. 

But  a  few  more  days  and  they  would  have  been 
gone  seven  years.  Then  one  day  there  blew  such  a 
gale  and  the  weather  was  so  bad  that  they  believed 
they  would  never  reach  land  any  more.  While  the 
stormy  weather  lasted  they  were  all  obliged  to 
work,  so  they  got  no  rest.  On  the  third  day  the 
wind  went  down  and  there  came  a  calm. 

Now  they  were  all  so  tired  after  the  hard  work 
and  rough  weather  that  they  fell  asleep  at  once, 
but  the  youngest  prince  felt  uneasy  and  could  get 
no  sleep. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.  97 

While  he  paced  backward  and  forward  on  deck 
the  ship  neared  a  small  island,  and  on  the  shore 
was  a  little  dog  running  about  barking  and  whining 
at  the  ship,  just  as  if  it  wanted  to  be  taken  on 
board.  The  prince  walked  up  and  down  on  the 
deck,  whistling  and  calling  the  dog,  but  the  little 
creature  only  barked  and  whined  the  more. 

The  prince  thought  it  was  a  great  pity  to  leave  it 
there  to  starve ;  he  fancied  it  must  have  belonged 
to  a  ship  which  had  been  wrecked  during  the  storm, 
but  he  did  not  think  he  could  help  it  either,  for  he 
thought  he  would  not  be  able  to  put  the  boat  out 
without  help,  and  all  the  crew  slept  so  soundly  he 
would  not  awake  them  for  the  sake  of  a  dog. 

But  the  weather  was  bright  and  calm,  so  he  said 
to  himself :  "  I  had  better  go  ashore  and  save  the 
dog,"  and  tried  to  lower  the  boat  and  found  it  was 
easily  managed. 

He  rowed  ashore  and  went  up  to  the  dog,  but 
every  time  he  tried  to  seize  it  the  dog  ran  away 
from  him,  and  this  went  on  until  before  he  knew  a 
word  about  it  he  found  himself  in  a  large  gilded 
castle.  There  the  dog  changed  into  a  beautiful 
princess,  and  on  the  bench  sat  a  man  so  big  and 
ugly  that  the  prince  became  quite  terrified. 

"  You  need  not  be  frightened,"  said  the  man,  but 
the  prince  became  still  more  frightened  when  he 
heard  his  voice ;  "  for  I  know  very  well  what  you 
want ;  you  are  the  twelve  princes  who  are  looking 
for  the  twelve  princesses  that  were  lost.  I  know 
where  they  are ;  they  are  in  my  master's  castle ; 


98         FAIRY   TALES   FROM    THE    FAR   NORTH. 

there  they  sit  on  golden  stools,  each  scratching  a 
head,  for  he  has  twelve  of  them.  Now  you  have 
been  sailing  about  for  seven  y ears,  but  you  will  have 
to  sail  for  seven  more  years  before  you  find  them. 
You  might  as  well  stay  here,"  he  said,  "and  wed 
my  daughter ;  but  first  of  all  you  must  kill  my 
master,  for  he  is  very  hard  on  us.  We  are  tired  of 
him,  and  when  he  is  dead  I  shall  be  king  in  his 
place.  Try  first  if  you  can  lift  this  sword,"1'  said 
the  troll. 

The  prince  took  hold  of  an  old  rusty  sword  which 
hung  on  the  wall,  but  he  could  scarcely  stir  it. 

"  Well,  then,  you  will  have  to  take  a  drink  from 
this  bottle,"  said  the  troll. 

When  he  had  taken  one  sip  he  was  just  able  to 
move  the  sword,  and  when  he  had  taken  another 
he  could  lift  it,  and  when  he  had  taken  still  another 
he  could  flourish  the  sword  as  easily  as  a  rolling- 
pin. 

"When  you  return  on  .board,"  said  the  troll, 
"you  must  hide  the  sword  well  in  }^our  berth,  so 
that  Knight  Red  beard  does  not  see  it ;  he  would 
not  be  able  to  use  it,  of  course,  but  he  hates  }^ou, 
and  will  try  to  take  your  life." 

"  Three  days  before  the  seven  years  are  up,"  he 
said  further,  "  all  that  has  happened  now  will 
happen  again ;  you  will  have  bad  and  stormy 
weather,  and  when  it  is  over  you  will  all  become 
sleepy  ;  ther  you  .  must  take  the  sword  and  go 
ashore.  You  will  then  come  to  a  castle  where  there 
are  all  sorts  of  sentinels — wolves,  bears,  and  lions  ; 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.  99 

but  you  must  not  be  afraid  of  them,  for  they  will 
all.  fall  down  before  your  feet.  When  you  get  into 
the  castle  you  will  see  the  troll-king  sitting  in  a 
gorgeous  chamber,  magnificently  dressed ;  he  has 
twelve  heads,  and  the  princesses  will  be  sitting  on 
their  golden  stools,  each  of  them  scratching  one  of 
his  heads.  This  kind  of  work,  you  know,  they  don't 
like,  so  you  must  make  haste  and  cut  off  one  head 
after  the  other;  if  the  troll  wakes  up  and  sees  you 
he  will  swallow  you  alive." 

The  prince  went  on  board  with  the  sword,  and 
he  remembered  well  what  he  had  been  told.  All 
on  board  were  still  asleep,  and  he  hid  the  sword  in 
his  berth,  so  that  Knight  Eedbeard  and  the  other 
could  not  see  it.  It  then  began  to  blow  again,  so 
the  prince  called  the  others  and  said  he  thought  it 
would  not  do  to  sleep  any  longer  since  they  had 
such  a  fair  wind.  Nobody  guessed  he  had  been 
away  from  the  ship. 

Now  when  the  seven  years  all  but  three  days  had 
passed  it  happened .  just  as  the  troll  had  said. 
There  came  bad  and  stormy  weather  which  lasted 
for  three  days,  and  when  it  was  over  they  all  be 
came  sleepy  after  their  hard  work  and  lay  down ; 
but  the  youngest  prince  rowed  ashore  and  the 
sentinels  fell  down  before  him,  and  so  he  .came  to 
the  castle.  When  he  entered  the  chamber  the  king- 
troll  sat  and  slept  just  as  the  other  troll  had  fore 
told,  and  the  twelve  princesses  sat  on  their  stools, 
each  scratching  one  of  his  heads.  The  prince  made 
signs  to  the  princesses  to  move  away,  but  they 


100      FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

pointed  at  the  troll  and  motioned  to  the  prince  to 
go. 

He  continued  to  make  signs  to  them,  and  then 
they  understood  that  he  wanted  to  save  them. 
They  moved  quietly  away,  one  after  the  other,  and 
immediately  he  cut  off  the  heads  of  the  troll-king, 
till  the  blood  flowed  like  a  great  brook. 

When  the  troll  was  killed  the  prince  rowed  out 
to  the  ship  again  and  hid  the  sword  ;  he  thought  he 
had  done  his  share,  and  as  he  could  not  get  the  body 
away  by  himself,  he  thought  the  others  ought  to 
help  him  a  little.  He  therefore  called  them,  and 
said  it  was  a  shame  they  should  be  lying  asleep 
while  he  had  been  finding  the  princesses  and  had 
saved  them  from  the  troll-king. 

The  others  laughed  at  him,  and  said  that  no 
doubt  he  had  been  sleeping  as  well,  if  not  better, 
than  they,  and  had  dreamed  that  he  was  such  a 
clever  fellow.  If  any  one  had  saved  the  princesses, 
it  was  far  more  likely  to  be  one  of  them. 

But  the  youngest  prince  told  them  how  it  had  all 
happened,  and  when  they  went  ashore  writh  him  and 
saw  the  brook  of  blood,  the  castle,  the  troll,  the 
twelve  heads  and  the  princesses,  they  saw  he  had 
told  the  truth  ;  and  so  they  helped  him  to  throw 
the  heads  and  the  body  into  the  sea. 

They  were  now  all  quite  happy,  but  none  more 
so  than  the  princesses,  who  after  this  had  no  longer 
to  sit  all  day  and  scratch  the  troll-king's  heads. 
They  took  with  them  of  all  the  gold  and  silver  and 
valuable  things  which  were  there,  as  much  as  they 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAP    NORTH.  lUl 

could  carry ;  and  so  they  went  on  board,  both  the 
princes  and  the  princesses. 

When  they  had  got  a  good  way  out  to  sea  the 
princesses  said  that  in  their  joy  they  had  forgotten 
their  golden  crowns  ;  they  lay  in  a  chest,  and  they 
would  so  much  like  to  take  them  with  them.  As 
none  of  the  others  offered  to  go  for  them,  the 
youngest  prince  said : 

"  I  have  ventured  as  much  before,  so  now  I  may 
as  well  fetch  the  crowns,  if  you  will  let  down  the 
sails  and  wait  till  I  come  back  again." 

Yes,  that  they  would ;  but  when  he  had  got  so 
far  away  that  they  could  not  see  anything  more  of 
him,  Knight  Redbeard,  who  himself  wanted  to  be 
foremost  and  have  the  youngest  princess,  said  that 
it  was  of  no  use  to  lie  and  wait  for  him,  for  they 
must  surely  know  he  would  never  come  back. 

They  knew,  he  said,  that  the  king  had  given  him, 
Knight  Redbeard,  power  and  authority  to  do  just 
as  he  thought  right ;  and  they  could  say  that  he  had 
saved  the  princesses,  and  if  any  one  dared  to  say 
otherwise  he  should  lose  his  life. 

The  princes  therefore  dared  not  do  anything  else 
but  what  Knight  Eedbeard  told  them,  and  so  they 
set  sail. 

In  the  meantime,  the  youngest  prince  rowed 
ashore  and  went  into  the  castle,  found  the  chest  in 
which  were  the  golden  crowns,  and  tugged  and 
dragged  till  he  got  it  down  to  the  boat;  but  when 
he  came  to  the  place  where  he  expected  to  find  the 
ship  it  was  gone.  As  he  could  not  see  it  in  any 


101*          FAJ.RY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

direction,  he  soon  guessed  what  had  happened,  and 
there  was  therefore  nothing  else  for  him  to  do  but 
to  turn  round  and  row  to  land  again. 

He  was,  of  course,  afraid  to  be  alone  the  whole 
night  in  the  castle,  but  there  was  no  other  shelter, 
so  he  took  courage,  locked  all  the  doors  and  gates, 
and  lay  himself  down  in  a  room  where  there  was  a 
ready-made  bed.  But  he  felt  afraid,  and  became 
still  more  so  when,  after  he  had  been  in  bed  awhile, 
the  walls  and  roof  began  to  creak  and  groan  as  if 
the  whole  castle  was  falling  to  pieces.  Then,  all  of 
a  sudden,  something  which  sounded  like  a  load  of 
hay  came  flopping  down  by  the  side  of  his  bed,  and 
all  became  quiet  again ;  but  he  heard  a  voice,  which 
told  him  not  to  be  afraid,  and  said : 

; 

"  I  am  bird  Dauntless, 
All  that  I  do  is  faultless; 
Be  not  afraid  of  me, 
For  I  will  help  you  o'er  the  sea!" 

"  The  first  thing  you  must  do  in  the  morning 
when  you  awake  is  to  go  to  the  storehouse  and  fetch 
four  barrels  of  rye  for  me ;  I  must  have  that  for 
breakfast,  otherwise  I  can  do  nothing." 

When  the  prince  awoke  in  the  morning  he  saw  an 
enormous  bird  with  a  feather  at  the  back  of  its  neck 
as  thick  as  a  small  pine  tree.  The  prince  went  to 
the  storehouse  for  the  four  barrels  of  rye,  and  when 
the  bird  had  eaten  it  he  told  the  prince  to  hang  the 
chest  with  the  golden  crowns  on  one  side  of  his  neck 
and  to  take  as  much  gold  and  silver  as  would  balance 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.          103 

it  and  hang  it  on  the  other;  then  he  asked  the 
prince  to  get  on  his  back  and  to  hold  on  to  the  big 
feather  on  his  neck.  Off  they  started,  whisking 
through  the  air  at  such  a  speed  that  it  did  not  take 
long  before  they  overtook  the  ship.  The  prince 
wanted  to  go  on  board  and  fetch  the  sword,  because 
he  was  afraid  somebody  might  see  it,  for  the  troll 
had  told  him  it  must  not  be  seen  by  anybody  ;  but 
bird  Dauntles  said  they  could  not  trouble  about  it 
now. 

"  Knight  Redbeard  is  not  likely  to  see  it,"  said 
the  bird ;  "  but  if  you  go  on  board  he  will  try  and 
take  your  life,  as  he  wants  to  have  the  youngest 
princess ;  but  you  may  rest  easy  about  her,  for  she 
puts  a  naked  sword  by  her  side  every  night  when 
she  goes  to  bed." 

After  some  time  they  reached  the  island  where 
the  troll  whom  the  prince  had  first  met  lived. 
There  the  prince  was  so  well  received  that  there 
was  no  end  of  festivities.  The  troll  did  not  know 
how  to  treat  him  well  enough,  for  he  had  killed  his 
master  and  made  him  the  king;  he  would  gladly 
give  him  his  daughter  and  half  of  his  kingdom.  But 
the  prince  had  taken  such  a  fancy  to  the  youngest 
princess  that  he  could  not  rest  and  wanted  every 
moment  to  set  out  again. 

The  troll  asked  him  to  take  a  rest  and  remain 
with  him  for  a  time,  and  told  him  the  princesses 
had  seven  years  to  sail  yet  before  they  would  get 
home.  He  also  told  him  the  same  about  the  princess 
as  bird  Dauntless  had  done. 


104          FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH. 

"  You  can  rest  easy  about  her ;  she  places  a  naked 
sword  by  her  side  in  bed.  If  you  don't  believe  me," 
said  the  troll,  "  you  can  go  on  board  when  the  ship 
passes  here  and  see  for  yourself  and  fetch  the  sword. 
I  must  have  that  back  in  any  case." 

When  the  ship  came  sailing  past  the  weather  had 
been  bad  again,  and  when  the  prince  went  on  board 
he  found  everybody  asleep,  the  princesses  each  with 
a  prince  by  her  side ;  but  the  youngest  lay  alone 
with  a  naked  sword  beside  her,  and  on  the  floor,  in 
front  of  the  bed  lay  Knight  Redbeard. 

The  prince  found  his  sword  and  went  ashore, 
without  any  one  having  discovered  he  had  been  on 
board;  but  still  he  was  uneasy  and  wanted  to  be  off, 
and  when  at  last  the  seven  }rears  were  nearly  over, 
all  but  about  three  weeks,  the  troll  said : 

"  Now  you  had  better  get  ready  to  sail,  since  you 
will  not  remain  with  us.  I  will  lend  you  my  iron 
boat,  which  goes  of  itself ,  if  only  you  say  'Boat,  sail 
on.'  In  the  boat  you  will  find  an  iron  club,  and 
that  club  you  must  lift  when  you  see  the  ship  right 
in  front  of  you  ;  they  will  then  have  such  a  gale  of 
wind  they  will  not  think  of  looking  for  you.  When 
you  come  alongside  the  ship  you  must  lift  the  club 
again,  and  they  will  then  have  such  a  hurricane 
that  they  will  have  something  else  to  do  than  be 
spying  after  you ;  when  you  have  passed  them  you 
must  lift  the  club  for  the  third  time,  taking  care 
always  to  lay  it  down  carefully,  otherwise  }^ou  will 
get  such  weather  that  both  you  and  they  will  perish. 
When  you  reach  land  you  need  not  trouble  yourself 


When  he  «aw  the  ship  right  to  front  of  him,  he  lifted  the  club.— Page  106, 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.          105 

about  the  boat ;  you  need  only  give  it  a  push,  turn 
it  round  and  say,  '  Boat,  go  home  the  same  way  you 
came.' " 

When  the  prince  started  he  had  much  gold  and 
silver  and  lots  of  fine  things,  and  clothes  and  linen, 
which  the  troll  princess  had  made  for  him  during 
his  long  stay  there,  so  he  was  much  richer  than  any 
of  his  brothers. 

He  had  no  sooner  sat  himself  down  in  the  boat 
and  said  :  "  Boat,  sail  on,"  .than  the  boat  set  off,  and 
when  he  saw  the  ship  right  in  front  of  him  he  lifted 
the  club ;  they  then  got  such  a  gale  of  wind  that 
they  could  not  look  his  way.  When  he  got  along 
side  the  ship  he  lifted  the  iron  club  again,  and  the 
weather  became  so  bad  and  stormy  that  the  white 
foam  splashed  up  on  all  sides,  and  the  waves  washed 
over  the  deck,  so  that  the  people  on  board  had 
something  else  to  do  than  be  spying  after  him ;  and 
when  he  was  passing  them  he  lifted  the  club  for  the 
third  time,  and  then  they  had  so  much  to  look  after 
that  they  had  no  time  to  find  out  who  he  could  be. 
He  reached  land  long  before  the  ship,  and  when  he 
had  taken  all  his  things  out  of  the  boat  he  shoved  it 
out  again,  turned  it  round  and  said  :  "  Boat,  go 
home  the  same  way  you  came !"  and  off  the  boat 
started.  » 

He  disguised  himself  as  a  sailor,  and  went  to  an 
old  woman  who  lived  in  a  wretched  hut  hard  by ; 
he  told  her  he  was  a  poor  sailor  and  belonged  to  a 
big  ship,  which  had  been  wrecked,  and  that  he  was 
the  only  one  who  had  been  saved.  He  then  asked 


i 


106     FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

her  if  she  would  give  him  shelter  for  himself  and 
the  things  he  had  saved. 

"  Bless  me !"  said  the  woman,  "  I  don't  think  I 
can  give  any  one  lodgings ;  you  see  how  it  is  here, 
I  have  nothing  to  lie  upon  myself,  still  less  anything 
for  others  to  lie  upon." 

The  sailor  said  that  did  not  matter ;  if  he  could 
only  get  a  roof  over  his  head  he  did  not  mind  how 
he  lay.  She  could  not  deny  him  that,  if  he  would 
take  things  as  he  found  them  ;  so  in  the  evening  he 
brought  his  things  to  the  hut. 

No  sooner  were  they  in  than  the  woman,  who 
was  very  fond  of  some  new  gossip  to  run  about 
with,  began  to  ask  him  who  he  was,  where  he  came 
from,  where  he  had  been,  where  he  was  going, 
what  he  had  with  him,  on  what  errand  he  was  trav 
eling,  and  if  he  had  heard  anything  about  the  twelve 
princesses,  who  had  disappeared  so  many  years  ago, 

knd  about  many  other  things  which  she  wanted  to 
now  and  talk  about. 

But  he  said  he  felt  poorly,  and  his  head  ached  so 
much  after  the  terrible  weather,  he  could  not  give 
an  account  of  anything ;  she  would  have  to  leave 
him  in  peace  for  some  days,  till  he  had  taken  a  rest 
after  all  the  work  he  had  had  to  do;  then  she 
should  know  everything  and  more  besides. 

The  following  day  the  old  woman  began  again  to 
question  him,  but  the  sailor  had  still  such  pains  in 
his  head  he  could  not  give  an  account  of  anything. 
But  all  at  once  he  dropped  a  hint  that  perhaps  he 
knew  something  about  the  princesses  after  all 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.  10? 

The  old  woman  ran  at  once  with  what  she  had 
heard  to  all  the  gossips  in  the  neighborhood,  and 
one  after  the  other  came  running  and  asking  for 
news  of  the  princesses,  if  he  had  seen  them,  if  they 
were  soon  coming  home,  if  they  were  on  the  way, 
and  more  of  that  kind.  But  he  still  complained 
that  his  head  ached,  so  he  could  not  answer  them  ; 
but  he  could  tell  them  this  much,  that  if  they  had 
not  been  drowned  in  the  storm  they  would  arrive 
in  a  fortnight's  time,  or  perhaps  before  ;  but  he 
could  not  tell  for  certain  if  they  were  alive.  He 
had  seen  them,  but  they  might  easily  have  gone  to 
the  bottom  since  then. 

One  of  the  old  women  ran  to  the  palace  with  this 
news,  and  said  there  was  a  sailor  in  the  hut  of  a 
certain  old  woman,  that  he  had  seen  the  princesses, 
and  that  they  might  be  expected  in  a  fortnight's 
time,  or  perhaps  in  a  week. 

When  the  king  heard  this  he  sent  a  messenger  to 
fetch  the  sailor  that  he  might  come  and  tell  the 
news  himself. 

"  I  am  not  in  a  fit  state  to  go,"  said  the  sailor, 
"  for  I  have  no  clothes  good  enough  in  which  to 
appear  before  the  king."  But  the  king's  messenger 
said  he  must  come  ;  the  king  would  and  must  speak 
with  him,  no  matter  how  he  was  dressed,  for  no 
one  had  as  yet  been  able  to  tell  the  king  anything 
about  the  princesses. 

"  Yes,  I  can,"  said  the  sailor.  "  But  I  cannot  tell 
if  they  are  still  alive.  When  I  saw  them  the 
weather  was  so  bad  that  we  were  wrecked  ;  but  if 


108          FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

they  are  still  alive  they  will  be  here  in  a  fortnight's 
time,  or  perhaps  before." 

when  the  king  heard  this  he  almost  went  out  of 
his  mind  with  joy  ;  and  as  the  time  when  the  sailor 
had  said  they  would  return  drew  near,  the  king 
proceeded  to  the  shore  in  great  pomp  to  meet  them. 

There  was  great  joy  all  over  the  country  when 
the  ship  arrived  with  the  princesses,  the  princes 
&nd  Knight  Redbeard ;  but  no  one  was  more  glad 
than  the  old  king,  who  now  had  got  his  daughters 
back  again.  The  eleven  elder  princesses  were  very 
happy  and  merry,  but  the  youngest,  who  was  to 
have  Knight  Redbeard,  was  always  weeping  and 
sorrowful. 

The  king  did  not  like  this,  and  asked  her  whv 
she  was  not  merry  and  happy  like  her  sisters ;  there 
was  no  reason  why  she  should  be  so  sad,  now  that 
she  had  escaped  from  the  troll  and  was  going  to 
marry  such  a  brave  man  as  Knight  Redbeard.  But 
she  dared  not  say  anything,  for  Knight  Redbeard 
had  vowed  he  would  take  the  life  of  any  one 
who  told  how  all  had  happened.  One  day  when 
the  princesses  were  busy  making  fine  clothes  for 
the  weddings,  a  person  dressed  like  a  sailor,  with  a 
pack  on  his  back,  came  into  the  palace,  and  asked 
if  they  would  buy  some  pretty  things  from  him  for 
their  wedding ;  he  had  many  rare  and  costly  articles 
both  in  gold  and  silver.  Yes,  they  would  look  at 
his  Avares.  Then  they  glanced  at  him  and  thought 
they  recognized  both  him  and  many  of  the  things 
he  had. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 


109 


"  You,  who  have  so  many  fine  things,"  said  the 
youngest  princess,  "  must  surely  have  many  things 
which  are  still  finer,  and  which  would  suit  us  still 
better." 

"  That  may  be,"  said  the  peddler ;  but  her  sisters 


told  her  to  be  quiet,  and  reminded  her  what  Knight 
Redbeard  had  threatened  them  with. 

Some  time  afterward  the  princesses  were  sitting 
one  day  by  the  window,  when  the  youngest  prince 
came  by  with  the  chest  containing  the  golden 
crowns  on  his  back. 

When  he  came  into  the  great  hall  of  the  palace 
ht  opened  the  chest  for  the  princesses,  and  they  all 


110          FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

recognized  their  crowns.  The  youngest  then 
said: 

"  I  think  it  is  only  right  that  the  one  who  saved 
us  should  have  the  reward  he  deserves.  It  is  not 
Knight  Redbeard,  but  he  who  has  brought  us  our 
crowns — that  has  saved  us."  And  then  the  prince 
threw  off  his  sailor  attire  and  stood  before  them 
more  finely  dressed  than  all  the  other  princes,  and 
the  old  king  then  ordered  that  Knight  Redbeard 
should  be  put  to  death. 

Now  there  was  great  joy  in  the  palace.  Each 
prince  took  his  bride,  and  they  kept  such  a  wedding 
that  it  was  heard  of  and  talked  about  throughout 
twelve  kingdoms. 


THE  TOWN  MOUSE  AND   THE   COUOTKY 
MOUSE. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  a  town  mouse  met  a  country 
mouse  on  the  outskirts  of  a  wood.  The  country 
mouse  was  sitting  under  a  hazel  thicket  plucking 
nuts. 

"Busy  harvesting,  I  see,"  said  the  town  mouse. 
"  Who  would  think  of  our  meeting  in  this  out-of  - 
the-way  part  of  the  world  ?" 

"  Just  so,"  said  the  country  mouse. 

"  You  are  gathering  nuts  for  your  winter  store  ?" 
said  the  town  mouse. 

"  I  am  obliged  to  do  so  if  we  intend  having  any 
thing  to  live  upon  during  the  winter,"  said  the 
country  mouse. 

"The  husk  is  big  and  the  nut  full  this  year, 
enough  to  satisfy  any  hungry  body,"  said  the  town 
mouse. 


112         FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

"Yes,  you  are  right  there,"  said  the  country 
mouse ;  and  then  she  related  how  well  she  lived 
and  how  comfortable  she  was  at  home. 

The  town  mouse  maintained  that  she  was  the 
better  off,  but  the  country  mouse  said  that  nowhere 
could  one  be  so  well  off  as  in  the  woods  and  hills. 
The  town  mouse,  however,  declared  she  was  best 
off;  and  as  they  could  not  agree  on  this  point  they 
promised  to  visit  one  another  at  Christmas,  then 
they  could  see  for  themselves  which  was  really  the 
most  comfortable. 

The  first  visit  was  to  be  paid  by  the  town  mouse. 

Now,  although  the  country  mouse  had  moved 
down  from  the  mountains  for  the  Avinter,  the  road 
was  long  and  tiring,  and  one  had  to  travel  up  hill 
and  down  dale  ;  the  snow  lay  thick  and  deep,  so  the 
town  mouse  found  it  hard  work  to  get  on,  and  she 
became  both  tired  and  hungry  before  she  reached 
the  end  of  her  journey. 

How  nice  it  will  be  to  get  some  food,  she 
thought. 

The  country  mouse  had  scraped  together  the  best 
she  had.  There  were  nut  kernels,  polypoly  and 
other  sorts  of  roots,  and  many  other  good  things 
which  grow  in  woods  and  fields.  She  kept  it  all  in 
a  hole  far  under  the  ground,  so  the  frost  could  not 
reach  it,  and  close  by  was  a  running  spring,  open 
all  the  winter,  so  she  could  tirink  as  much  water  as 
she  liked.  There  was  an  abundance  of  all  she 
had,  and  they  ate  both  well  and  heartily ;  but  the 
town  mouse  thought  it  was  very  poor  fare  indeed. 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.  113 

"  One  can,  of  course,  keep  body  and  soul  together 
on  this,"  said  she ;  "  but  I  don't  think  much  of  it. 
Now  you  must  be  good  enough  to  visit  me  and 
taste  what  we  have." 

Yes,  that  she  would,  and  before  long  she  set  out. 
The  town  mouse  had  gathered  together  all  the 
scraps  from  the  Christmas  fare  which  the  woman 
of  the  house  had  dropped  on  the  floor  during  the 
holidays — bits  of  cheese,  butter  and  tallow  ends, 
cake-crumbs,  pastry  and  many  other  good  things. 
In  the  dish  under  the  ale-tap  she  had  drink  enough ; 
in  fact  the  place  was  full  of  all  kinds  of  dainties. 

They  ate  and  fared  well ;  the  country  mouse 
seemed  never  to  have  had  enough ;  she  had  never 
tasted  such  delicacies.  But  then  she  became  thirsty, 
for  she  found  the  food  both  strong  and  rich,  and 
now  she  wanted  something  to  drink. 

"  We  haven't  far  to  go  for  the  beer  we  shall  drink," 
said  the  town  mouse,  and  jumped  upon  the  edge  of 
the  dish  and  drank  till  she  was  no  longer  thirsty ; 
she  did  not  drink  too  much,  for  she  knew  the 
Christmas  beer  was  strong.  The  country  mouse, 
however,  thought  the  beer  a  splendid  drink;  she 
had  never  tasted  anything  but  water,  so  she  took 
one  sip  after  another,  but  as  she  could  not  stand 
strong  drink  she  became  tipsy  before  she  left  the 
dish. 

The  drink  got  into  her  head  and  down  into  her 
toes  and  she  began  running  and  jumping  about 
from  one  beer  barrel  to  the  other,  and  to  dance  and 
tumble  about  on  the  shelves  among  the  cups  and 


114        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

mugs;  she  squeaked  and  screeched  as  if  she  were 
both  drunk  and  mad.  About  her  being  drunk  there 
was  very  little  doubt. 

"  You  must  not  carry  on  as  if  you  had  just  come 
from  the  backwoods  and  make  such  a  row  and 
noise,"  said  the  town  mouse ;  "  the  master  of  the 
house  is  a  bailiff  and  he  is  very  strict  indeed,"  she 
added. 

The  country  mouse  said  she  didn't  care  either  for 
bailiffs  or  beggars.  But  the  cat  sat  at  the  top  of 
the  cellar  steps,  lying  in  wait,  and  heard  all  the 
chatter  and  noise.  When  the  woman  of  the  house 
went  down  to  draw  some  beer  and  lifted  the  trap 
door  the  cat  slipped  by  into  the  cellar  and  struck 
its  claws  into  the  country  mouse.  Then  there  was 
quite  another  sort  of  dance. 

The  town  mouse  slid  back  into  her  hole  and  sat 
in  safety  looking  on,  while  the  country  mouse  sud 
denly  became  sober  when  she  felt  the  claws  of  the 
cat  in  her  back. 

"  Oh,  my  dear  bailiff,  oh,  dearest  bailiff,  be 
merciful  and  spare  my  life  and  I  will  tell  you  a 
fairy  tale,"  she  said. 

"  Well,  go  on,"  said  the  cat. 

"  Once  upon  a  time  there  were  two  little  mice," 
said  the  country  mouse,  squeaking  slowly  and  piti 
fully,  for  she  wanted  to  make  the  story  last  as  long 
as  she  could. 

"  Then  they  were  not  lonely,"  said  the  cat  dryly 
and  curtly. 

"  And  they  had  a  steak  which  they  were  going 
to  fry." 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 


115 


"  Then  they  could  not  starve,"  said  the  cat. 

"  And  they  put  it  out  on  the  roof  to  cool,"  said 
the  country  mouse. 

'•  Then  they  did  not  burn  themselves,"  said  the 
cat. 


"But  there  came  a  fox  and  a  crow  and  ate  it  all 
up,"  said  the  country  mouse. 

"Then  I'll  eat  you,"  said  the  cat.  But  just  at 
that  moment  the  woman  shut  the  trapdoor  with  a 
slam,  which  so  startled  the  cat  that  she  let  go  her 
hold  of  the  mouse.  One  bound  and  the  country 
mouse  found  herself  in  the  hole  with  the  town 
mouse. 


116          FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

From  there  a  passage  led  out  into  the  snow,  and 
you  may  be  sure  the  country  mouse  did  not  wait 
long  before  she  set  out  homeward. 

"  And  this  is  what  you  call  living  well  and  being 
best  off,"  she  said  to  the  town  mouse.  "  Heaven 
preserve  me  from  having  such  a  fine  place  and  such 
a  master !  Why,  I  only  just  got  away  with  my  life !" 


1" 


SORT  A  MARIA'S   CASTLE. 

THERE  \>as  once  upon  a  time  a  couple  who  had  a 
son  and  his  nan>e  was  Ilalvor.  Since  he  was  quite  a 
small  boy  he  ne  rer  cared  to  do  any  work ;  he  would 
only  sit  in  the  hoarth  and  rake  together  the  ashes. 
The  parents  had  many  times  apprenticed  him  to 


118          FAIRY   TALES   FROM    THE    FAR   NORTH. 

learn  some  trade,  but  Halvor  never  stopped  long 
anywhere;  when  he  had  been  at  a  place  for  some 
days  he  always  ran  off  home  again,  sat  himself 
down  in  the  hearth  .and  began  digging  in  the  ashes. 

But  one  day  a  skipper  came  to  the  house  and 
asked  Halvor  if  he  had  a  mind  to  go  to  sea  with  him 
and  visit  foreign  countries.  Yes,  Halvor  had  a 
mind  for  that,  and  this  time  he  was  not  long  in 
getting  ready. 

How  long  they  sailed  I  do  not  know,  but  after 
some  time  a  storm  overtook  them,  and  when  it  was 
over  and  the  sea  became  calm  they  did  not  know 
where  they  were;  they  had  drifted  to  a  foreign 
coast  which  was  quite  unknown  to  them. 

As  there  was  no  wind  at  all  they  had  to  remain 
there,  and  Halvor  asked  the  skipper  for  permission 
to  go  ashore  and  look  about  a  bit,  for  he  would 
rather  do  that  than  lie  and  sleep, 

"Do  you  think  you  are  fit  to  show  yourself?" 
said  the  skipper.  "  Why,  you  have  no  other  clothes 
but  the  rags  you  have  on  your  back.'7  But  Halvor 
would  not  give  in  and  at  last  he  got  permission  ; 
but  he  must  come  back  on  board  when  it  began  to 
blow. 

He  started  off  and  found  the  country  most  beau 
tiful;  all  around  he  saw  large  plains  with  cornfields 
and  meadows,  but  he  did  not  see  any  people.  Soon 
it  began  to  blow,  but  Halvor  did  not  think  he  had 
seen  enough  yet,  so  he  thought  he  would  go  on  a 
little  further  and  see  if  he  could  find  any  people, 

In  a  while  he  came  to  a  big  road,  which  was  so 


When  the  Troll  with  the  three  heads  came  into  the  room,  Halvor  took  the 
sword  and  cut  off  all  the  heads. -Page  119. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.      119 

even  one  could  roll  an  egg  along  it.  Halvor  fol 
lowed  the  road  and  toward  evening  he  saw  a  great 
castle  far  away  all  lighted  up. 

As  he  had  been  walking  all  day  almost  without 
any  food,  he  was  very  hungry ;  but  the  nearer  he 
came  to  the  castle  the  more  afraid  he  felt. 

In  the  castle  the  fires  were  still  burning  in  the 
hearths.  Halvor  went  into  the  kitchen,  which  was 
the  most  splendid  he  had  ever  seen ;  there  were  pots 
and  pans  both  of  gold  and  silver,  but  no  people. 
When  Halvor  had  stood  there  awhile  and  no  one 
came,  he  went  to  a  door  and  opened  it  and  inside 
sat  a  princess  at  her  spinning  wheel. 

"Oh,  dear!  Oh,  dear!"  she  cried,  "how  dare  any 
Christian  person  come  here!  You  had  better  go 
away  if  you  don't  want  the  troll  to  swallow  you 
alive,  for  here  lives  a  troll  with  three  heads." 

"  It  would  be  all  one  to  me,  even  if  he  had  four," 
said  the  lad.  "I  should  much  like  to  see  him!  I 
am  not  going  away,  for  I  have  done  nothing  wrong ; 
you  must  give  me  something  to  eat  as  I  am  terribly 
hungry." 

When  Halvor  had  finished  his  meal  the  princess 
told  him  he  had  better  try  if  he  could  swing  the 
sword  which  hung  on  the  wall.  No,  he  could  not 
even  lift  it. 

"  You  had  better  take  a  drink  from  that  bottle 
which  hangs  by  the  side  of  it,"  said  the  princess, 
"  for  the  troll  does  so  when  he  is  going  to  use  the 
sword." 

Halvor  took  a  drink  and  immediately  he  was  able 


120          FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

to  swing  the  sword  as  if  it  had  been  nothing.  Now, 
thought  he,  the  troll  might  come  any  time.  All  at 
once  they  heard  the  troll  coming  and  Halvor  hid 
behind  the  door. 

"  Ugh !  I  smell  Christian  blood  here,"  said  the 
troll,  putting  one  head  in  through  the  door. 

"  You'll  soon  find  that  is  so,"  said  Halvor,  and  cut 
off  all  his  heads.  The  princess  was  so  glad  at  being 
saved  that  she  both  sang  and  danced.  Then  she 
began  to  think  about  her  sisters  and  said : 

"  I  wish  my  sisters  were  saved  also." 

"Where  are  they?"  asked  Halvor;  and  so  she 
told  him  one  was  shut  up  by  a  troll  in  a  castle  fifty 
miles  away  and  the  other  was  shut  up  in  a  castle 
another  fifty  miles  away. 

"  First  you  must  help  me  to  get  this  carcass 
away,"  said  she.  Halvor  was  so  strong  he  swept 
everything  before  him  and  cleared  all  away  in  no 
time ;  he  then  ate  and  enjoyed  himself  for  the  rest 
of  the  day. 

Next  morning  he  set  out  at  daybreak,  and  so 
eager  was  he  to  reach  the  castle  that  he  ran  the 
whole  day.  When  at  last  he  saw  it  he  became 
frightened  again  ;  it  was  more  gorgeous  even  than 
the  first  one,  but  here  also  he  could  see  no  one.  He 
went  into  the  kitchen  and  straight  on  into  the  room 
without  stopping. 

"  Oh,  dear !  how  dare  any  Christian  person  come 
here  I"  cried  the  princess.  "  I  don't  know  how  long 
I  have  been  here,  but  during  all  that  time  I  have 
not  seen  a  Christian.  You  had  better  go  away,  for 
here  lives  a  troll  who  has  six  heads." 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          121 

"  ISTo,  I  won't  go,"  said  Halvor,  "  even  if  he  had 
twelve." 

"He  will  swallow  you  alive,"  said  the  princess. 
But  it  was  of  no  use,  Halvor  would  not  go ;  he  was 
not  afraid  of  the  troll,  but  he  wanted  meat  and 
drink,  for  he  was  hungry  after  the  journey.  He 
got  as  much  as  he  wanted  and  then  the  princess 
again  begged  him  to  go. 

"  ]STo,"  said  Halvor,  "  I  won't  go,  for  I  have  done 
nothing  wrong  and  I  have  nothing  to  be  afraid  of." 

"  That  makes  no  difference,"  said  the  princess, 
"  for  he  will  take  you,  whether  or  no ;  but  since 
you  will  not  go,  try  if  you  can  swing  this  sword, 
which  the  troll  uses  when  he  goes  to  war." 

He  could  not  swing  the  sword,  so  the  princess 
told  him  to  take  a  drink  from  the  bottle  which 
hung  by  the  side.  When  he  had  clone  so  he  found 
himself  able  to  swing  the  sword.  All  of  a  sudden 
the  troll  came  home ;  he  was  so  fat  and  big  he  had 
to  go  sideways  to  get  through  the  door.  When  he 
had  got  one  of  his  heads  inside  he  cried : 

"  Ugh !  what  a  smell  of  Christian  blood  !"  but  at 
the  same  moment  Halvor  cut  off  one  head  and  then 
all  the  others. 

The  princess  was  very  glad,  but  she  soon  began 
to  think  of  her  sisters  and  wish  that  they  also  were 
saved.  Halvor  thought  that  could  be  done,  and 
wanted  to  set  off  at  once ;  but  first  he  had  to  help 
the  princess  to  get  rid  of  the  body  of  the  troll,  and 
next  morning  he  set  out. 

It  was  a  long  way  to  the  castle,  and  he  walked 


122          FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

and  ran  as  fast  as  he  could  to  get  there  in  good 
time.  Toward  evening  he  came  in  sight  of  the 
castle,  and  found  it  even  more  splendid  than  the 
others.  He  was  not  the  least  afraid  this  time,  but 
went  straight  through  the  kitchen  and  into  the 
room.  There  sat  the  princess,  who  was  so  pretty 
that  no  words  can  tell.  She  said  just  the  same  as 
the  other  princesses,  that  no  Christian  person  had 
been  there  since  she  came,  and  asked  him  to  go 
away,  or  else  the  troll  would  swallow  him  alive. 
This  troll  had  nine  heads,  she  said. 

"Well,  even  if  he  has  twice  nine  and  still  another 
nine  I  shall  not  go,"  said  Halvor,  going  up  to  the 
fire. 

The  princess  entreated  him  to  go,  so  that  the  troll 
should  not  eat  him ;  but  Halvor  said ,  "  Let  him 
come  when  he  likes ;"  then  she  gave  him  the  sword 
and  asked  him  to  take  a  sip  from  the  bottle,  so  that 
he  could  use  the  sword. 

All  of  a  sudden  the  troll  came  in  with  a  great 
noise.  He  was  still  fatter  and  bigger  than  the 
other  two,  and  he  had  also  to  go  sideways  to  get 
through  the  door. 

"  Ugh !  what  a  smell  of  Christian  blood !"  he  said  ; 
but  at  the  same  moment  Halvor  cut  off  his 
first  head  and  then  all  the  others ;  but  the  last  one 
was  very  tough  and  gave  Halvor  more  work  than 
anything  he  had  yet  had  to  do,  although  he  felt  so 
very  strong. 

All  the  princesses  were  now  together  at  this 
castle,  and  they  were  happier  than  they  had  ever 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.  123 

been  in  all  their  lives.  They  were  very  fond  of  Hal- 
vor  and  he  of  them.  He  could  choose  the  one  he 
liked  best  of  them  to  wed,  but  the  youngest  was 
most  fond  of  him  of  all  three.  He,  however,  went 
about  looking  so  sad,  and  he  was  so  sullen  and  quiet, 
that  the  princesses  asked  him  what  he  was  longing 
for  and  whether  he  did  not  like  staying  with  them. 
Yes,  that  he  liked  well  enough,  for  they  had  plenty 
to  live  on  and  he  was  very  comfortable ;  but  he 
longed  so  much  for  home,  his  parents  were  still 
alive,  and  he  had  a  great  mind  to  see  them  again. 
That  could  easily  be  arranged,  they  said : 

"  You  can  go  there  and  back  without  any  danger 
if  you  follow  our  advice."  Yes,  he  would  do  every 
thing  they  told  him.  Then  they  dressed  him  up 
till  he  looked  as  fine  as  a  prince,  and  they  put  a 
magic  ring  on  his  finger,  so  that  he  had  only  to 
wish  himself  anywhere  and  his  wish  would  be  ful 
filled  ;  but  they  said  he  must  not  lose  the  ring  or 
mention  their  names,  for  then  there  would  be  an 
end  to  all  their  happiness  and  he  would  never  see 
them  any  more. 

"  I  wish  I  were  home,"  said  Halvor,  and  as  he 
wished  so  it  happened.  He  stood  outside  his 
parents'  house  in  less  than  no  time.  It  was  just  in 
the  dusk  of  the  evening,  and  when  his  parents  saw 
what  a  fine  and  noble  stranger  was  coming  they 
lost  their  wits,  and  began  to  bow  and  courtesy. 
Halvor  asked  if  he  could  stop  there  and  get  lodg 
ings  for  the  night. 
No,  that  he  couldn't.  "Our  place  is  not  good 


124:          FAIRY    TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

enough,"  they  said;  "we  have  nothing  here  that 
would  do  for  so  grand  a  traveler."  He  had  better 
go  up  to  the  farm,  which  was  not  far  away;  he 
could  see  the  chimney-pots  from  where  they  stood, 
and  there  he  would  find  plenty  of  everything. 
Halvor  did  not  like  that  at  all ;  he  wanted  to  re 
main  where  he  was,  but  the  parents  stuck  to  what 
they  had  said,  that  he  should  go  up  to  the  farm, 
for  there  he  could  get  both  meat  and  drink,  while 
they  had  not  even  a  chair  to  offer  him. 

"No,"  said  Halvor,  "I  won't  go  there  till  the 
morning ;  let  me  remain  here  to-night ;  I  can  sit  in 
the  hearth."  They  could  not  refuse  him  that,  so 
Halvor  sat  down  in  the  hearth  and  began  digging 
in  the  ashes,  just  as  he  had  done  when  he  was  at 
home  and  idled  away  his  time. 

They  spoke  about  a  good  many  things,  and  told 
Halvor  one  thing  and  another  till  at  last  he  asked 
them  if  they  ever  had  had  any  children.  Yes,  they 
had  a  boy  whose  name  was  Halvor,  but  they  did 
not  know  whereabouts  he  was  wandering,  or 
whether  he  was  alive  or  dead. 

"Could  I  belie?"  said  Halvor. 

"No,  not  likely,"  said  the  woman;  "Halvor  was 
such  a  lazy,  idle  boy,  he  would  never  do  anything, 
and  he  was  so  ragged  his  rags  would  hardly  keep 
together  ;  he  could  never  become  as  grand  as  you." 

In  a  little  while  the  wcman  went  over  to  the 
chimney  to  rake  a  fire,  and  just  then  the  light  from 
the  ashes  shone  upon  Halvor  the  same  as  when  he 
used  to  sit  at  home  raking  i.i  the  ashes,  and  then 
the  woman  knew  him  again. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.        125 

rtOf  course  it  is  you,  Halvor!"  she  said,  and  the 
old  couple  became  so  glad  they  did  not  know 
what  to  do.  He  had  then  to  tell  them  all  that  had 
happened  to  him,  and  his  mother  was  so  proud  of 
him  that  she  wanted  to  take  him  up  with  her  to  the 
farm  and  show  him  off  to  the  girls,  who  had  always 
put  on  such  airs.  She  went  first  and  Halvor  came 
after.  When  she  got  up  there  she  told  the  people 
Halvor  had  come  home  again,  and  they  should  soon 
see  what  a  fine  fellow  he  was;  he  looked  like  a 
prince,  she  said. 

"Oh,  indeed!"  said  the  girls,  turning  up  thei* 
noses ;  "  we  expect  he  is  the  same  ragged  fellow  as 
ever."  Just  at  that  moment  Halvor  came  in,  and 
so  startled  the  girls,  who  were  busy  dressing  them 
selves,  that  they  took  to  their  heels  with  nothing  on 
but  their  petticoats. 

When  they  came  in  again  they  were  so  shy  they 
hardly  dared  to  look  at  Halvor,  to  whom  they  had 
formerly  always  been  so  proud  and  short-spoken. 

"  Well,  you  have  always  thought  yourselves  so  fine 
and  handsome  that  there  were  none  like  you,  but 
you  should  just  see  t'^  eldest  of  the  princesses  I  have 
saved,"  said  Halvoi  her  side  you  would  look 

like  scullery -maidf  ar-ti  the  second  sister  is  still 
prettier ;  but  the  st,  who  is  my  sweetheart, 

is  prettier  than  b<  b  T^e  sun  and  the  moon.  I  wish 
they  were  here,  aen  you  would  see,"  said 

Halvor. 

He  had  no  sooner  spoken  the  words  than  the 
princesses  stooc  This  vexed  him  very  much, 


126        FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NOPTH. 

for  now  he  remembered  his  promise  to  them. 
Much  rejoicing  now  began  on  the  farm  in  honor  of 
the  princesses,  but  they  did  not  care  to  remain  there. 

"  We  want  to  visit  your  parents,"  they  said  to 
Halvor,  "and  then  we'll  travel  about  and  look 
around  us."  He  said  he  would  go  with  them,  and 
soon  they  came  to  a  large  lake  some  distance  from 
the  farm.  Close  to  the  lake  was  a  green  hillside, 
where  the  princesses  wanted  to  rest  awhile,  for  they 
thought  it  would  be  so  nice  to  sit  there  and  look 
out  over  the  water. 

They  sat  down,  and  after  awhile  the  youngest 
princess  said  to  Halvor :  "  Won't  you  lie  down  and 
rest  your  head  in  my  lap  ?"  Yes,  he  would  do  so, 
and  before  long  he  fell  asleep.  Then  she  took  the 
ring  from  his  finger  and  put  another  in  its  place, 
and  said  to  her  sisters : 

"  Take  hold  of  me  as  I  take  hold  of  you.  I  wish 
we  were  back  in  Soria  Maria's  castle." 

When  Halvor  awoke  he  soon  guessed  he  had  lost 
the  princesses  and  began  to  cry  and  lament,  and 
was  so  disconsolate  no  one  could  get  a  word  out  of 
him.  Though  his  parents  begged  and  prayed  him 
to  stop  with  them  he  would  not,  but  bid  them  fare 
well  and  said  he  was  not  ever  likely  to  see  them 
again,  for  if  he  did  not  find  the  princesses  life  would 
not  be  worth  living.  He  had  three  hundred  dollars 
left,  which  he  put  in  his  pocket,  and  then  set  out. 

When  he  had  got  a  bit  on  the  way  he  met  a  man 
with  a  horse,  which  he  wanted  to  buy,  so  he  began 
bargaining. 


FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.        127 

"  Well,  I  have  not  exactly  been  thinking  of  sell 
ing  it,"  said  the  man,  "  but  if  we  can  come  to  some 
agreement,  well — "  Halvor  asked  how  much  he 
wanted  for  it. 

"  I  did  not  pa}7  much  for  it  and  it  isn't  worth 
much,"  said  the  man  ;  "  it  is  a  good  horse  to  ride  on, 
but  no  good  as  a  cart-horse.  In  any  case  he  could 
manage  to  get  along  with  your  scrip-bag  and  you  as 
well,  if  you  will  walk  a  bit  now  and  then." 

At  last  they  agreed  about  the  price  and  Halvor 
put  his  bag  on  the  horse,  and  sometimes  walked  and 
sometimes  rode,  till  toward  evening  he  came  to  a 
green  field,  and  there  stood  a  great  tree,  under 
which  he  sat  down.  He  let  the  horse  loose  and  then 
opened  his  bag  and  had  some  food,  but  did  not  lie 
down  to  sleep. 

At  daylight  he  set  out,  for  he  had  no  peace  of 
mind  till  he  was  on  his  way  again ;  so  he  rode  and 
walked  by  turns  all  day  through  a  large  forest  with 
many  beautiful  green  openings  gleaming  here  and 
there  among  the  trees.  He  did  not  know  where  he 
was,  nor  in  which  direction  he  was  going ;  he  only 
gave  himself  time  to  rest  when  he  came  to  one  of 
the  green  spots ;  he  then  foddered  the  horse  and  had 
some  food  himself. 

On  he  walked  and  on  he  rode,  and  it  seemed  as  if 
there  never  would  be  an  end  to  the  forest.  But 
toward  evening  on  the  second  day  he  saw  a  light 
shining  between  the  trees.  "  I  hope  the  folks  are 
not  gone  to  bed,  so  that  I  can  warm  myself  and  get 
something  to  eat,"  said  Halvor  to  himself.  When 


128        FAIRY    TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

he  came  nearer  he  found  only  a  poor  little  hut,  and 
through  the  window  he  saw  an  old  couple.  They 
were  very  old  and  gray  and  the  woman  had  such  a 


long  nose  that  she  could  use  it  to  rake  the  ashes 
together  with  when  she  sat  by  the  fire. 

"  Good-evening,  good-evening,"  said  the  woman. 
"But  what  business  can  you  have  here,  I  wonder? 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          129 

No  Christian  people  have  been  this  way  for  over  a 
hundred  }rears." 

Halvor  told  her  he  was  going  to  Soria  Maria's 
castle  and  asked  her  if  she  knew  the  way. 

"  No,"  said  the  old  woman,  "  I  don't  know,  but 
the  moon  will  be  out  soon  and  I'll  ask  her ;  she  is 
sure  to  know,  for  she  shines  over  every  place." 

As  soon  as  the  moon  appeared  bright  and  clear 
above  the  tree-tops  the  woman  went  out. 

"  You  moon  !  you  moon !"  she  shouted,  "  can  you 
tell  me  the  way  to  Soria  Maria's  castle?" 

"No,"  said  the  moon,  "I  cannot,  for  when  I 
passed  that  way  a  cloud  stood  before  me." 

"  Wait  awhile  yet,"  said  the  woman  to  Halvor, 
"  the  west  wind  will  be  here  directly ;  he  is  sure  to 
know,  for  he  whistles  and  blows  in  every  corner. 
Dear,  dear,  you  have  a  horse,  I  see,"  continued  the 
old  woman  as  she  came  into  the  room.  "Let  the 
poor  creature  into  the  meadow ;  don't  let  it  remain 
here  at  the  door  to  starve.  Will  you  exchange  it 
with  me  for  something  ?"  said  she.  "  We  have  a 
pair  of  old  boots  here  and  when  you  have  them  on 
you  can  take  twenty  miles  at  every  step.  You  can 
have  them  instead  of  the  horse,  and  then  you 
can  get  sooner  to  Soria  Maria's  castle. 

Halvor  agreed  at  once,  and  the  woman  took  such 
a  fancy  to  the  horse  she  was  ready  to  dance  for  joy, 
"  For  now  I  can  ride  to  church  like  other  people," 
she  said. 

Halvor  became  impatient  to  start,  but  the  woman 
said  there  was  no  hurry. 


130        FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"  Lie  down  on  the  bench  and  take  a  nap,  for  we 
have  no  bed,"  said  she,  "  and  I  will  look  out  for  the 
west  wind  when  he  comes." 

All  of  a  sudden  the  west  wind  came  rushing 
along,  making  the  walls  creak  and  groan.  The 
woman  ran  out. 

"  You  west  wind  !  you  west  wind  !  can  you  tell 
me  the  way  to  Soria  Maria's  castle  ?  There  is 
somebody  here  who  wants  to  go  that  way." 

"  Yes,  I  know  it  well,"  said  the  west  wind.  "  I 
am  just  going  there  to  dry  clothes  for  a  wedding 
which  is  to  be.  If  he  is  quick  on  his  legs  he  can 
come  with  me." 

Halvor  just  then  came  out. 

"  You  will  have  to  make  haste  if  you  want  com 
pany,"  said  the  west  wind;  and  away  they  went 
far  over  hills  and  dales  and  seas,  while  Halvor  had 
as  much  as  he  could  do  to  keep  up. 

"  I  haven't  time  to  go  with  you  any  further,"  said 
the  west  wind,  "  for  I  have  to  tear  up  a  pine  forest 
first  before  I  go  to  the  bleaching  ground  to  dry 
the  clothes ;  but  if  you  keep  along  the  ridge  of  the 
mountain  you  will  come  to  some  lasses  who  are 
washing  clothes,  and  then  you  have  not  far  to  go  to 
Soria  Marie's  castle." 

Before  long  Halvor  came  to  the  lasses  who  were 
busy  washing  clothes.  They  asked  if  he  had  seen 
anything  of  the  west  wind. 

"  He  was  coming  here  to  dry  clothes  for  the 
wedding,"  said  they. 

"  Yes,"  said  Halvor,  "  he  has  only  gone  to  tear 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.  131 

up  a  pine  forest ;  it  will  not  be  long  before  he  is 
here."  And  then  he  asked  them  the  way  to  Soria 
Maria's  castle. 

They  put  him  in  the  way,  and  when  he  came  to 
the  castle  he  found  quite  a  crowd  of  horses  and 
people  there.  But  Halvor  was  so  ragged  and  dirty 
from  having  followed  the  west  wind  through  bush 
and  bog  that  he  kept  out  of  sight,  and  would  not 
go  to  the  castle  till  the  last  day,  when  they  were 
going  to  have  a  grand  dinner.  And  when  the  time 
came,  as  was  the  custom,  for  drinking  the  health  of 
the  bride,  and  the  servant  was  filling  every  one's 
cup — that  of  the  bride  and  bridegroom,  the  knights' 
and  yeomen's — he  came  at  length  to  Halvor. 

He  drank  the  toast,  and  let  the  ring  which  the 
princess  had  put  on  his  finger  at  the  lake  fall  into 
the  cup.  He  then  asked  the  servant  to  carry  the 
cup  to  the  bride,  with  his  compliments. 

The  princess  at  once  got  up  from  the  table. 

"Who  has  most  right  to  wed  one  of  us,"  she 
said ;  "  he  who  saved  us  or  he  who  sits  here  as 
bridegroom  ?" 

All  thought  there  could  be  but  one  opinion  about 
that ;  so  when  Halvor  heard  it,  he  was  not  long  in 
getting  off  his  rags  and  in  dressing  himself  as  a 
bridegroom. 

"  Yes,  he  is  the  right  one !"  cried  the  youngest 
princess  when  she  saw  him  ;  and  so  she  threw  the 
other  one  over,  and  was  married  to  Halvor. 


r\/ 


WELL  DONE,  ILL  PAID. 


ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  man   who  was 
going  to  the  forest  for  firewood.     On  his  way  he 


met  a  bear. 


FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.        133 

"  Give  me  your  horse,  or  I  will  kill  all  your  sheep 
next  summer !"  said  the  bear. 

"  Oh,  dear !  oh,  dear !"  said  the  man,  "  there  is 
not  a  chip  of  wood  in  the  house.  You  must  let  me 
drive*  home  a  cartload  of  wood,  or  we  shall  be 
frozen  to  death ;  but  I  will  come  back  with  the 
horse  to-morrow  for  you." 

"Well,  that  would  do ;  but  it  was  understood  that 
if  he  did  not  return  he  would  lose  all  his  sheep  dur 
ing  the  summer.  The  man  loaded  his  sledge  with 
wood,  and  drove  homeward;  but  he  was  not  very 
pleased  with  the  arrangement  he  had  made,  you  can 
imagine.  On  the  way  he  met  a  fox. 

"  Why  do  you  look  so  sad  ?"  asked  the  fox. 

u  Oh,  I  met  a  bear  up  yonder,"  said  the  man, 
"  and  I  had  to  promise  that  at  this  time  to-morrow 
he  should  have  my  horse.  If  he  does  not  get  it,  he 
said  he  would  tear  all  my  sheep  to  pieces  next 
summer." 

"  Oh,  nothing  worse  than  that  ?"  said  the  fox.  "  If 
you  will  give  me  your  fattest  ram  I  will  soon  get 
you  out  of  your  difficulty." 

The  man  promised  this,  and  said  he  would  be 
sure  to  keep  his  word. 

"  When  you  come  to  the  bear  to-morrow  with  the 
horse,"  said  the  fox,  "  I  will  be  up  in  the  mountain, 
and  will  shout  out  to  you.  When  the  bear  asks 
who  it  is,  you  must  say  it  is  Peter,  the  huntsman, 
who  is  the  finest  shot  in  the  world.  Afterward 
you  must  use  your  own  wits." 

The  next  day  the  man  set  out,  and  when  he  met 


134          FAIRY  TALES    FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

the  bear    some  one  up  in    the  mountain  began 
shouting. 

"  Whst!  what's  that?"  said  the  bear. 

"  Oh,  that's  Peter,  the  huntsman.  He  is  the 
finest  shot  in  the  world,"  said  the  man.  "  I  know 
him  by  his  voice." 

"  Have  you  seen  any  bear  about  here,  Erik  ?" 
came  from  the  wood. 

"  Say  no !"  said  the  bear. 

"No,  I  have  not  seen  any  bear,"  said  Erik. 

"  "What's  that  standing  by  your  sledge  then  ?" 
came  from  the  wood. 

"  Say  it  is  the  root  of  an  old  tree,"  whispered  the 
bear. 

"  Oh,  it's  only  the  root  of  an  old  tree,"  said  Erik. 

"  Such  roots  we  generally  load  our  sledges  with," 
came  from  the  wood  ;  "  if  you  are  not  able  to  do  so, 
I  will  come  and  help  you." 

"  Say  you  can  do  it  yourself,  and  put  me  on  the 
sledge." 

"  No,  thanks,  I  can  manage  by  myself,"  said  the 
man,  and  rolled  the  bear  on  to  the  sledge. 

"  Such  roots  we  generally  tie  down,"  came  from 
the  wood  ;  "  do  you  want  any  help  3" 

"  Say  you  can  do  it  yourself,  and  tie  me  down," 
said  the  bear. 

"  No,  thanks,  I  can  do  it, "  said  Erik,  and  began 
tying  down  the  bear  with  all  the  ropes  he  had  till 
the  bear  could  not  move  a  paw. 

"  Such  roots  we  generally  strike  an  ax  into  when 
we  have  tied  it  down,"  came  from  the  wood,  "  for 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.  135 

then  one  can  steer  the  sledge  better  down  the  big 
hills." 

"  Pretend  to  strike  the  ax  into  me,"  whispered 
the  bear. 

But  the  man  took  the  ax  and  split  the  skull  of 
the  bear,  who  was  killed  on  the  spot.  So  Erik  and 
the  fox  became  good  friends  and  got  on  well 
together,  but  when  they  came  to  the  farm  the  fox 
said: 

"  I  should  like  to  go  in  with  you,  but  I  don't  like 
dogs.  I  will  wait  here  till  you  come  with  the  ram. 
But  remember  to  pick  me  out  one  that  is  very  fat." 

Yes,  the  man  would  do  so,  and  thanked  the  fox 
besides  for  his  help.  When  he  had  put  the  horse 
into  the  stable  he  went  across  to  the  sheep  pen. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?"  asked  his  wife. 

"  Oh,  I  am  only  going  over  to  the  sheep-pen  to 
fetch  a  fat  ram  for  that  good  fox  who  saved  our 
horse,"  said  the  man,  "  as  I  have  promised  him  one." 

"  Why  on  earth  give  that  thief  of  a  fox  any 
ram  ?"  said  the  woman.  "  We  have  got  the  horse 
quite  safe  and  the  bear  besides,  and  the  fox  has 
stolen  more  geese  from  us  than  the  ram  is  worth ; 
or,  if  he  hasn't  already  taken  them,  he  is  sure  to  do 
so  some  time.  ISFo,  take  the  most  savage  pair  of 
those  dogs  of  yours  and  let  loose  on  him,  then  per 
haps  we'll  get  rid  of  that  thieving  old  rascal,'  said 
the  woman. 

The  man  thought  this  was  sensible  advice  and 
took  two  of  his  savage  red  dogs,  put  them  in  a  bag 
and  set  out  with  them. 


136 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE 


NORTH. 


"  Have  you  got  the  ram  ?"  said  the  fox. 

"  Yes,  come  and  fetch  it,"  said  the  man,  undoing 
the  string  round  the  bag  and  setting  the  dogs  at  the 
fox. 

"  Ugh !"  said  the  fox,  bounding  away,  "  the  old 
saying,  '  Well  done,  ill  paid,'  is  only  too  true ;  and 
now  I  find  it  is  also  true  that  one's  relations  are 
one's  worst  enemies,"  said  he,  as  he  saw  the  red 
dogs  at  his  heels. 


ASHIEPATTLE   AND  HIS    GOODLY   CEEW. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  king,  and  this  king 
had  heard  about  a  ship  which  went  just  as  fast  by 
land  as  by  water;  and  as  he  wished  to  have  one 
like  it,  he  promised  any  one  who  could  build  one 
for  him  his  daughter  and  half  the  kingdom.  And 
this  was  given  out  at  every  church  all  over  the 
country,  There  were  many  who  tried,  as  you  can 
imagine ;  for  they  thought  it  would  be  a  nice  thing 
to  have  half  the  kingdom,  and  the  princess  wouldn't 
be  a  bad  thing  into  the  bargain.  But  they  all  fared 
badly, 

Now  there  were  three  brothers,  who  lived  far 
away  on  the  borders  of  a  forest;  the  eldest  was 


138         FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH, 

called  Peter,  the  second  Paul,  and  the  youngest 
Espen  Ashiepattle,  because  he  always  sat  in  the 
hearth,  raking  and  digging  in  the  ashes. 

It  so  happened  that  Ashiepattle  was  at  church  on 
the  Sunday  when  the  proclamation  about  the  ship, 
which  the  king  wanted,  was  read.  When  he  came 
home  and  told  his  family,  Peter  the  eldest  asked 
his  mother  to  get  some  food  ready  for  him,  for  now 
he  was  going  away  to  try  if  he  could  build  the  ship 
and  win  the  princess  and  half  the  kingdom.  When 
the  bag  was  ready  he  set  out.  On  the  way  he  met 
an  old  man  who  was  very  crooked  and  decrepit. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?"  said  the  man. 

"  I'm  going  into  the  forest  to  make  a  trough  for 
my  father.  He  doesn't  like  to  eat  at  table  in  our 
company,"  said  Peter. 

"Trough  it  shall  be!"  said  the  man.  "What 
have  you  got  in  that  bag  of  yours  ?"  he  added. 

"  Dung,"  said  Peter. 

"  Dung  it  shall  be,"  said  the  man.  Peter  then 
went  into  the  forest  and  began  to  cut  and  chop 
away  at  the  trees  and  work  away  as  hard  as  he 
could,  but  in  spite  of  all  his  cutting  and  chopping 
he  could  only  turn  out  troughs.  Toward  dinner 
time  he  wanted  something  to  eat  and  opened  his 
bag.  But  there  was  not  a  crumb  of  food  in  it.  As 
he  had  nothing  to  live  upon  and  as  he  did  not  turn 
out  anything  but  troughs,  he  became  tired  of  the 
work,  took  his  ax  and  bag  on  his  shoulder  and  went 
home  to  his  mother. 

Paul  then  wanted  to  set  out  to  try  his  luck  at 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.  139 

building  the  ship  and  winning  the  princess  and 
half  the  kingdom.  He  asked  his  mother  for 
provisions,  and  when  the  bag  was  ready  he  threw 
it  over  his  shoulder  and  went  on  his  way  to  the 
forest.  On  the  road  he  met  the  old  man,  who  was 
very  crooked  and  decrepit. 

"  Where  are  you  going?"  said  the  man. 

"  Oh,  I  am  going  into  the  forest  to  make  a  trough 
for  our  sucking  pig,"  said  Paul. 

"  Pig-trough  it  shall  be,"  said  the  man.  "  What 
have  you  got  in  that  bag  of  yours?"  added  the 
man. 

"Dung,"  said  Paul. 

u  Dung  it  shall  be,"  said  the  man. 

Paul  then  began  felling  trees  and  working  away 
as  hard  as  he  could,  but  no  matter  how  he  cut  ami 
how  he  worked  he  could  only  turn  out  pig-troughs. 
He  did  not  give  in,  however,  but  worked  away  till 
far  into  the  afternoon  before  he  thought  of  taking 
any  food  ;  then  all  at  once  he  became  hungry  and 
opened  his  bag,  but  not  a  crumb  could  he  find. 
Paul  became  so  angry  he  turned  the  bag  inside  out 
and  struck  it  against  the  stump  of  a  tree ;  then  he 
took  his  ax,  went  out  of  the  forest  and  set  off  home 
ward. 

As  soon  as  Paul  returned,  Ashiepattle  wanted  to 
set  out  and  asked  his  mother  for  a  bag  of  food. 

"  Perhaps  I  can  manage  to  build  the  ship  and  win 
the  princess  and  half  the  kingdom,"  said  he. 

"  Well,  I  never  heard  the  like,"  said  his  mother. 
"Are  you  likely  to  win  the  princess,  you,  who 


140         FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH. 

never  do  anything  but  root  and  dig  in  the  ashes  ? 
No,  you  shan't  have  any  bag  with  food !" 

Ashiepattle  did  not  give  in,  however,  but  he 
prayed  and  begged  till  he  got  leave  to  go.  He  did 
not  get  any  food,  not  he ;  but  he  stole  a  couple  of 
oatmeal  cakes  and  some  flat  beer  and  set  out. 

When  he  had  walked  awhile  he  met  the  same  old 
man,  who  was  so  crooked  and  tattered  and  decrepit, 

"  Where  are  you  going?"  said  the  man. 

"  Oh,  I  was  going  into  the  forest  to  try  if  it  were 
possible  to  build  a  ship  which  can  go  as  fast  by 
land  as  by  water,"  said  Ashiepattle,  "  for  the  king 
has  given  out  that  any  one  who  can  build  such 
a  ship  shall  have  the  princess  and  half  the  kingdom." 

"  What  have  you  got  in  that  bag  of  yours  ?"  said 
the  man. 

"  Not  much  worth  talking  about ;  there  ought  to 
be  a  little  food  in  it,"  answered  Ashiepattle. 

"If  you'll  give  me  a  little  of  it  I'll  help  you," 
said  the  man. 

"With  all  my  heart,"  said  Ashiepattle,  "but 
there  is  nothing  but  some  oatmeal  cakes  and  a  drop 
of  flat  beer." 

It  didn't  matter  what  it  was,  the  man  said ;  if 
he  only  got  some  of  it  he  would  be  sure  to  help 
Ashiepattle. 

When  they  came  up  to  an  old  oak  in  the  wood  the 
man  said  to  the  lad,  "  Now  you  must  cut  off  a  chip 
and  then  put  it  back  again  in  exactly  the  same  place, 
and  when  you  have  done  that  you  can  lie  down  and 
go  to  sleep."  Ashiepattle  did  as  he  was  told  and 


he  ship  which  went  just  as  fast  by  land  as  by  water.— Page  140. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.  141 

then  lay  down  to  sleep,  and  in  his  sleep  he  thought 
he  heard  somebody  cutting  and  hammering  and 
sawing  and  carpentering,  but  he  could  not  wake  up 
till  the  man  called  him ;  then  the  ship  stood  quite 
finished  by  the  side  of  the  oak. 

"  Now  you  must  go  on  board  and  every  one  you 
meet  you  must  take  with  you,"  said  the  man. 
Espen  Ashiepattle  thanked  him  for  the  ship,  said 
he  would  do  so,  and  then  sailed  away. 

When  he  had  sailed  some  distance  he  came  to  a 
long,  thin  tramp,  who  was  lying  near  some  rocks, 
eating  stones. 

"  What  sort  of  a  fellow  are  you,  that  you  lie  there 
eating  stones  ?"  asked  Ashiepattle.  The  tramp  said 
he  was  so  fond  of  meat  he  could  never  get  enough, 
therefore  he  was  obliged  to  eat  stones.  And  then 
he  asked  if  he  might  go  with  him  in  the  ship. 

"  If  you  want  to  go  with  us,  you  must  make  haste 
and  get  on  board,"  said  Ashiepattle. 

Yes,  that  he  would,  but  he  must  take  with  him 
some  large  stones  for  food. 

When  they  had  sailed  some  distance  they  met 
one  who  was  lying  on  the  side  of  a  sunny  hill,  suck 
ing  at  a  bung. 

•'  Who  are  you,"  said  Ashiepattle,  "  and  what  is 
the  good  of  lying  there  sucking  that  bung?" 

"  Oh,  when  one  hasn't  got  the  barrel,  one  must 
be  satisfied  with  the  bung,"  said  the  man.  "  I'm 
nl  ways  so  thirsty,  I  can  never  get  enough  beer  and 
wine."  And  then  he  asked  for  leave  to  go  with 
him  in  the  ship. 


142      FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

"  If  you  want  to  go  with  me  you  must  make  haste 
and  get  on  board,"  said  Ashiepattle. 

Yes,  that  he  would.  And  so  he  went  on  board 
and  took  the  bung  with  him  to  allay  his  thirst. 

When  they  had  sailed  awhile  again  they  met  one 
who  was  lying  with  his  ear  to  the  ground,  listening. 

"  Who  are  you,  and  what  is  the  good  of  lying 
there  on  the  ground  listening  ?"  said  Ashiepattle. 

"  I'm  listening  to  the  grass,  for  I  have  such  good 
ears  that  I  can  hear  the  grass  growing,"  said  the 
man.  And  then  he  asked  for  leave  to  go  with  him 
in  the  ship.  Ashiepattle  could  not  say  nay  to  that, 
so  he  said : 

"If  you  want  to  go  with  me,  you  must  make 
haste  and  get  on  board." 

Yes,  that  the  man  would.  And  he  also  went  on 
board. 

When  they  had  sailed  some  distance  the}7  came 
to  one  who  was  standing  taking  aim  with  a  gun. 

"  Who  are  you,  and  what  is  the  good  of  standing 
there  aiming  like  that  ?"  asked  Ashiepattle. 

So  the  man  said  : 

"  I  have  such  good  eyes  that  I  can  hit  anything, 
right  to  the  end  of  the  world."  And  then  he  asked 
for  leave  to  go  with  him  in  the  ship. 

"  If  you  want  to  go  with  me,  you  must  make 
haste  and  get  on  board,"  said  Ashiepattle. 

Yes,  that  he  would.     And  he  went  on  board. 

When  they  had  sailed  some  distance  again  they 
came  to  one  who  was  hopping  and  limping  about 
on  one  leg,  and  on  the  other  he  had  seven  ton 
weights. 


To  the  end  of  the  world  in  less  than  five  minutes.— Page  148, 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.  143 

"  Who  are  you/'  said  Ashiepattle,  "  and  what  is 
the  good  of  hopping  and  limping  about  on  one  leg 
with  seven  ton  weights  on  the  other  ?" 

"  I  am  so  light,"  said  the  man,  "  that  if  I  walked 
on  both  my  legs  I  should  get  to  the  end  of  the 
world  in  less  than  five  minutes."  And  then  he 
asked  for  leave  to  go  with  him  in  the  ship. 

"  If  you  want  to  go  with  us,  you  must  make  haste 
and  get  on  board,"  said  Ashiepattle. 

Yes,  that  he  would.  And  so  he  joined  Ashiepattle 
and  his  crew  on  the  ship. 

When  they  had  sailed  on  some  distance  they  met 
one  who  was  standing  holding  his  hand  to  his 
mouth. 

"  Who  are  you  ?"  said  Ashiepattle,  "  and  what  is 
the  good  of  standing  there,  holding  your  mouth 
like  that?" 

"  Oh,  I  have  seven  summers  and  fifteen  winters 
in  my  body,"  said  the  man ;  "  so  I  think  I  ought  to 
keep  my  mouth  shut,  for  if  they  get  out  all  at  the 
same  time  they  would  finish  off  the  world  alto 
gether."  And  then  he  asked  for  leave  to  go  with 
him  in  the  ship. 

"  If  you  want  to  go  with  us  you  must  make  haste 
and  get  on  board,"  said  Ashiepattle. 

Yes,  that  he  would,  and  then  he  joined  the  others 
on  the  ship. 

When  they  had  sailed  a  long  time  they  came  to 
the  king's  palace. 

Ashiepattle  went  straight  in  to  the  king  and  said 
the  ship  stood  ready  in  the  courtyard  outside ;  and 


144          FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

now  he  wanted  the  princess,  as  the  king  had 
promised. 

The  king  did  not  like  this  very  much,  for  Ashie- 
pattle  did  not  cut  a  very  fine  figure ;  he  was  black 
and  sooty,  and  the  king  did  not  care  to  give  his 
daughter  to  such  a  tramp,  so  he  told  Ashiepattle 
that  he  would  have  to  wait  a  little. 

"  But  you  can  have  her  all  the  same,  if  by  this 
time  to-morrow  you  can  empty  my  storehouse  of 
three  hundred  barrels  of  meat,"  said  the  king. 

"  I  suppose  I  must  try,"  said  Ashiepattle ;  "  but 
perhaps  you  don't  mind  my  taking  one  of  my  crew 
with  me  ?" 

"  Yes,  you  can  do  that,  and  take  all  six  if  you 
like,"  said  the  king,  for  he  was  quite  sure  that  even 
if  Ashiepattle  took  six  hundred  with  him,  it  would 
be  impossible.  "So  Ashiepattle  took  with  him  the 
one  who  ate  stones  and  always  hungered  after  meat. 

When  they  came  next  morning  and  opened  the 
storehouse  they  found  he  had  eaten  all  the  meat, 
except  six  small  legs  of  mutton,  one  for  each  of  his 
companions.  Ashiepattle  then  went  to  the  king  and 
said  the  storehouse  was  empty,  and  he  supposed  he 
could  now  have  the  princess. 

The  king  went  into  the  storehouse  and,  sure 
enough,  it  was  quite  empty ;  but  Ashiepattle  was 
still  black  and  sooty,  and  the  king  thought  it  was 
really  too  bad  that  such  a  tramp  should  have  his 
daughter.  So  he  said  he  had  a  cellar  full  of  beer 
and  old  wine,  three  hundred  barrels  of  each  kind, 
which  he  would  have  him  drink  first. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.       145 

"  I  don't  mind  your  having  my  daughter  if  you 
can  drink  them  up  by  this  time  to-morrow,"  said  the 
king. 

"  I  suppose  I  must  try,"  said  Ashiepattle,  "  but 
perhaps  you  don't  mind  my  taking  one  of  my  crew 
with  me  ?" 

"  Yes,  you  may  do  that,"  said  the  king,  for  he 
was  quite  sure  there  was  too  much  beer  and  wine 
even  for  all  seven  of  them.  Ashiepattle  took  with 
him  the  one  who  was  always  sucking  the  bung  and 
was  always  thirsty ;  and  the  king  then  shut  them 
down  in  the  cellar. 

There  the  thirsty  one  drank  barrel  after  barrel, 
as  long  as  there  was  any  left,  but  in  the  last  barrel 
he  left  a  couple  of  pints  to  each  of  his  companions. 

In  the  morning  the  cellar  was  opened  and  Ashie 
pattle  went  at  once  to  the  king  and  said  he  had 
finished  the  beer  and  wine,  and  now  he  supposed  he 
could  have  the  princess  as  the  king  had  promised. 

"  Well,  I  must  first  go  down  to  the  cellar  and  see," 
said  the  king,  for  he  could  not  believe  it ;  but  when 
he  got  there  he  found  nothing  but  empty  barrels. 

But  Ashiepattle  was  both  black  and  sooty  and  the 
king  thought  it  wouldn't  do  for  him  to  have  such  a 
son-in-law.  So  he  said  that  if  Ashiepattle  could  get 
water  from  the  end  of  the  world  in  ten  minutes  for 
the  princess'  tea,  he  could  have  both  her  and  half 
the  kingdom;  for  he  thought  that  task  would  be 
quite  impossible. 

"  I  suppose  I  must  try,"  said  Ashiepattle,  and  sent 
for  the  one  of  his  crew  who  limped  about  on  one  leg 


146          FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

and  had  seven  ton  weights  on  the  other,  and  told 
him  he  must  takeoff  the  weights  and  use  his  legs  as 
quickly  as  he  could,  for  he  must  have  water  from 
the  end  of  the  world  for  the  princess'  tea  in  ten 
minutes. 

So  he  took  off  the  weights,  got  a  bucket  and  set 
off,  and  the  next  moment  he  was  out  of  sight.  But 
they  waited  and  waited  and  still  he  did  not  return. 
At  last  it  wanted  but  three  minutes  to  the  time  and 
the  king  became  as  pleased  as  if  he  had  won  a  big 
wager.  Then  Ashiepattle  called  the  one  who  could 
hear  the  grass  grow  and  told  him  to  listen  and  find 
out  what  had  become  of  their  companion. 

"  He  has  fallen  asleep  at  the  well,"  said  he  who 
could  hear  the  grass  grow  ;  "  I  can  hear  him  snor 
ing,  and  a  troll  is  scratching  his  head."  Ashie 
pattle  then  called  the  one  who  could  shoot  to  the 
end  of  the  world  and  told  him  to  send  a  bullet  into 
the  troll ;  he  did  so  and  hit  the  troll  right  in  the 
eye.  The  troll  gave  such  a  yell  that  he  woke  the 
man  who  had  come  to  fetch  the  water  for  the  tea, 
and  when  he  returned  to  the  palace  there  was  still 
one  minute  left  out  of  the  ten. 

Ashiepattle  went  straight  to  the  king  and  said : 
"Here  is  the  water;"  and  now  he  supposed  he  could 
have  the  princess,  for  surely  the  king  would  not 
make  any  more  fuss  about  it  now.  But  the  king 
thought  that  Ashiepattle  was  just  as  black  and 
sooty  as  ever,  and  did  not  like  to  have  him  for  a 
son-in-law ;  so  he  said  he  had  three  hundred  fath 
oms  of  wood  with  which  he  was  going  to  dry  corn 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.          147 

in  the  bakehouse,  and  he  wouldn't  mind  Ashiepattle 
having  his  daughter  if  he  would  first  sit  in  the 
bakehouse  and  burn  all  the  wood ;  he  should  then 
have  the  princess,  and  that  without  fail.  "  I  sup 
pose  I  must  try,"  said  Ashiepattle ;  "  but  perhaps 
you  don't  mind  my  taking  one  of  my  crew  with 
me?" 

"  Oh,  no,  you  can  take  all  six,"  said  the  king,  for 
he  thought  it  would  be  warm  enough  for  all  of 
them. 

Ashiepattle  took  with  him  the  one  who  had 
fifteen  winters  and  seven  summers  in  his  body,  and 
in  the  evening  he  went  across  to  the  bakehouse ; 
but  the  king  had  piled  up  so  much  wood  on  the  fire 
that  you  might  almost  have  melted  iron  in  the 
room.  They  could  not  get  out  of  it,  for  no  sooner 
were  they  inside  than  the  king  fastened  the  bolt 
and  put  a  couple  of  padlocks  on  the  door  besides. 
Ashiepattle  then  said  to  his  companion : 

"  You  had  better  let  out  six  or  seven  winters,  so 
that  we  may  get  something  like  summer  weather 
here." 

They  were  then  just  able  to  exist,  but  during  the 
night  it  got  cold  again  and  Ashiepattle  then  told 
the  man  to  let  out  a  couple  of  summers,  and  so  they 
slept  far  into  the  next  clay.  But  when  they  heard 
the  king  outside  Ashiepattle  said : 

"You  must  let  out  a  couple  more  winters,  but 
you  must  manage  it  so  that  the  last  winter  you  let 
out  strikes  the  king  right  in  the  face." 

He  did  so,  and  when  the  king  onened  the  door, 


148         FAIRY    TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

expecting  to  find  Ashiepattle  and  his  companion 
burned  to  cinders,  he  saw  them  huddling  together 
and  shivering  with  cold  till  their  teeth  chattered. 
The  same  instant  Ashiepattle's  companion  with  the 
fifteen  winters  in  his  body  let  loose  the  last  one 
right  in  the  king's  face,  which  swelled  up  into  a  big 
chilblain. 

"Can  I  have  the  princess  now?"  asked  Ashie 
pattle. 

"  Yes,  take  her  and  keep  her  and  the  kingdom 
into  the  bargain,"  said  the  king,  who  dared  not 
refuse  any  longer.  And  so  the  wedding  took  place 
and  they  feasted  and  made  merry  and  fired  off  guns 
and  powder. 

While  the  people  were  running  about  searching 
for  wadding  for  their  guns,  they  took  me  instead, 
gave  me  some  porridge  in  a  bottle  and  some  milk 
in  a  basket,  and  fired  me  right  across  here,  so  that 
I  could  tell  you  how  it  all  happened. 


*i « 


GUDBEAISTD  ON  THE 
HILLSIDE. 


THERE  was  once  upon  a 
time  a  man  whose  name 
was  Gudbrand.  He  had 
a  farm  which  lay  far  away 
up  on  the  side  of  a  hill, 
and  therefore  they  called 
him  Gudbrand  on  the 
hillside. 

He  and  his  wife  lived 
so  happily  together,  and 
agreed  so  well,  that  what 
ever  the  man  did  the  wife 
thought  it  so  well  done 
that  no  one  could  do  it 


150        FAIRY    TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

better.     No  matter  what  he  did,  she  thought  it  was 
always  the  right  thing. 

They  lived  on  their  own  farm,  and  had  a  hundred 
dollars  at  the  bottom  of  their  chest  and  two  cows  in 
their  cowshed.  One  day  the  woman  said  to  Gud- 
brand : 

"  I  think  we  ought  to  go  to  town  with  one  of  the 
cows  and  sell  it,  so  that  we  may  have  some  ready 
money  by  us.  We  are  pretty  well  off,  and  ought 
to  have  a  few  shillings  in  our  pocket  like  other 
people ;  the  hundred  dollars  in  the  chest  we  mustn't 
touch,  but  I  can't  see  what  we  want  with  more  than 
one  cow,  and  it  will  be  much  better  for  us,  as  I  shall 
have  only  one  to  look  after  instead  of  the  two  I 
have  now  to  mind  and  feed." 

Yes,  Gudbrand  thought,  that  was  well  and 
sensibly  spoken.  He  took  the  cow  at  once  and 
went  to  town  to  sell  it ;  but  when  he  got  there  no 
one  would  buy  the  cow. 

"  Ah,  well !"  thought  Gudbrand,  "  I  may  as  well 
take  the  cow  home  again.  I  know  I  have  both  stall 
and  food  for  it,  and  the  way  home  is  no  longer  than 
it  was  here."  So  he  strolled  homeward  again  with 
the  cow. 

When  he  had  got  a  bit  on  the  way  he  met  a  man 
who  had  a  horse  to  sell,  and  Gudbrand  thought  it 
was  better  to  have  a  horse  than  a  cow,  and  so  he 
changed  the  cow  for  the  horse. 

When  he  had  gone  a  bit  further  he  met  a  man 
who  was  driving  a  fat  pig  before  him,  and  then  he 
thought  it  would  be  better  to  have  a  fat  pig  than  a 
horse,  and  so  he  changed  with  the  man. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.      151 

He  now  went  a  bit  further,  and  then  he  met  a 
man  with  a  goat,  and  so  he  thought  it  was  surely 
better  to  have  a  goat  than  a  pig,  and  changed  with 
the  man  who  had  the  goat. 

Then  he  went  a  long  way,  till  he  met  a  man  who 
had  a  sheep  ;  he  changed  with  him,  for  he  thought 
it  was  always  better  to  have  a  sheep  than  a  goat. 

When  he  had  got  a  bit  further  he  met  a  man 
with  a  goose,  and  so  he  changed  the  sheep  for  the 
goose.  And  when  he  had  gone  a  long,  long  way  he 
met  a  man  with  a  cock  ;  he  changed  the  goose  with 
him,  for  he  thought  this  wise  :  "  It  is  surely  better 
to  have  a  cock  than  a  goose." 

He  walked  on  till  late  in  the  day,  when  he  began 
to  feel  hungry.  So  he  sold  the  cock  for  sixpence 
and  bought  some  food  for  himself ;  "  for  it  is 
always  better  to  keep  body  and  soul  together  than 
to  have  a  cock,''  thought  Gudbrand. 

He  then  set  off  again  homeward  till  he  came  to 
his  neighbor's  farm  and  there  he  went  in. 

"  How  did  you  get  on  in  town  ?"  asked  the  people. 

"  Oh,  only  so-so,"  said  the  man,  "  I  can't  boast  of 
my  luck,  nor  can  I  grumble  at  it  either."  And 
then  he  told  them  how  it  had  gone  with  him  from 
first  to  last. 

t(  Well,  you'll  have  a  fine  reception  when  you  get 
home  to  your  wife,"  said  the  man.  "  Heaven  help 
you !  I  should  not  like  to  be  in  your  place." 

44 1  think  I  might  have  fared  much  worse,"  said 
Gudbrand  ;  "  but  whether  I  have  fared  well  or  ill,  I 
have  such  a  kind  wife  that  she  never  says  anything, 
no  matter  what  I  do." 


152     FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH. 

"Ay,  so  you  say;  but  you  won't  get  me  to 
believe  it,"  said  the  neighbor. 

"  Shall  we  have  a  wager  on  it  ?"  said  Gudbrand. 
"  I  have  a  hundred  dollars  in  my  chest  at  home ; 
will  you  lay  the  same  ?" 

So  they  made  the  wager  and  Gudbrand  remained 
there  till  the  evening,  when  it  began  to  get  dark, 
and  then  they  went  together  to  the  farm. 

The  neighbor  was  to  remain  outside  the  door  and 
listen  while  Gudbrand  went  in  to  his  wife» 

"  Good-evening !"  said  Gudbrand  when  he  came 
in. 

"  Good-evening !"  said  the  wife.  "  Heaven  be 
praised  you  are  back  again." 

"  Yes,  here  I  am !"  said  the  man.  And  then  the 
wife  asked  him  how  he  had  got  on  in  town. 

"  Oh,  so-so,"  answered  Gudbrand  ;  "  not  much 
to  brag  of.  When  I  came  to  town  no  one  would  buy 
the  cow,  so  I  changed  it  for  a  horse." 

"  Oh,  I'm  so  glad  of  that,"  said  the  woman ;  "  we 
are  pretty  well  off  and  we  ought  to  drive  to  church 
like  other  people,  and  when  we  can  afford  to  keep 
a  horse  I  don't  see  why  we  should  not  have  one. 
Run  out,  children,  and  put  the  horse  in  the  stable." 

"  Well,  I  haven't  got  the  horse  after  all,"  said 
Gudbrand ;  "  for  when  I  had  got  a  bit  on  the  way  I 
changed  it  for  a  pig.'' 

"Dear  me!"  cried  the  woman,  "that's  the  very 
thing  I  should  have  done  myself.  I'm  so  glad  of 
that,  for  now  we  can  have  some  bacon  in  the  house 
and  something  to  offer  people  when  they  come  to 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.      153 

see  us.  What  do  we  want  with  a  horse  ?  People 
would  only  say  we  had  become  so  grand  that  we 
could  no  longer  walk  to  church.  Run  out.  children, 
and  let  the  pig  in." 

"  But  I  haven't  got  the  pig  either,"  said  Gud- 
brand,  "  for  when  I  had  got  a  bit  further  on  the  road 
I  changed  it  into  a  milch-goat." 

"Dear!  dear!  how  well  you  manage  every 
thing  !"  cried  the  wife.  "  When  I  really  come  to 
think  of  it,  what  do  I  want  with  the  pig?  People 
would  only  say,  'over  yonder  they  eat  up  every 
thing  they  have.'  No,  now  I  have  a  goat  I  can  have 
both  milk  and  cheese  and  keep  the  goat  into  the 
bargain.  Let  in  the  goat,  children." 

"But  I  haven't  got  the  goat  either,"  said  Gud- 
brand  ;  "  when  I  got  a  bit  on  the  way  I  changed  the 
goat  and  got  a  fine  sheep  for  it." 

"  Well !"  shouted  the  woman,  "  you  do  everything 
just  as  I  should  wish  it — just  as  if  I  had  been  there 
myself.  What  do  we  want  with  a  goat  ?  I  should 
have  to  climb  up  hill  and  down  dale  to  get  it  home 
at  night.  No,  when  I  have  a  sheep  I  can  have  wool 
and  clothes  in  the  house  and  food  as  well.  Run  out, 
children,  and  let  in  the  sheep." 

"  But  I  haven't  got  the  sheep  any  longer,"  said 
Gudbrand,  "  for  when  I  had  got  a  bit  on  the  way  I 
changed  it  for  a  goose." 

"  Well,  thank  you  for  that !"  said  the  woman ; 
"and  many  thanks,  too!  What  do  I  want  with  a 
sheep  ?  I  have  neither  wheel  nor  spindle,  and  I  do 
not  care  either  to  toil  and  drudge  making  clothes ; 


15-i      FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

wo  can  buy  clothes  now  as  before.  Now  I  can  have 
goose  fat,  which  I  have  so  long  been  wishing  for, 
and  some  feathers  to  stuff  that  little  pillow  of  mine. 
Kun,  children,  and  let  in  the  goose." 

"  Well,  I  haven't  got  the  goose  either,"  said  Gud- 
brand.  "  When  I  had  got  a  bit  further  on  the  way 
I  changed  it  for  a  cock." 

"  Well,  I  don't  know  how  you  can  think  of  it  all !" 
cried  the  woman.  "  It's  just  as  if  I  had  done  it  all 
myself.  A  cock!  Why,  it's  just  the  same  as  if 
you'd  bought  an  eight-day  clock,  for  every  morning 
the  cock  will  crow  at  four,  so  we  can  be  up  in  good 
time.  What  do  we  want  with  a  goose?  I  can't 
make  goose-fat  and  I  can  easily  fill  my  pillow  with 
some  soft  grass.  Run,  children,  and  let  in  the 
cock." 

"But  I  haven't  got  a  cock  either,"  said  Gud- 
brand  ;  "  for  when  I  had  got  a  bit  further  I  became 
so  terribly  hungry  I  had  to  sell  the  cock  for  sixpence 
and  get  some  food  to  keep  body  and  soul  together." 

"  Heaven  be  praised  you  did  that !"  cried  the 
woman.  "Whatever  you  do,  you  always  do  the 
very  thing  I  could  have  wished.  Besides,  what  did 
we  want  with  the  cock  ?  We  are  our  own  masters 
and  can  lie  as  long  as  we  like  in  the  mornings. 
Heaven  be  praised !  As  long  as  I  have  got  you 
back  again,  who  manage  everything  so  well,  I  shall 
neither  want  cock,  nor  goose,  nor  pig,  nor  cows." 

Gudbrand  then  opened  the  door.  "  Have  I  won 
the  hundred  dollars  now?"  he  asked.  And  the 
neighbor  was  obliged  to  confess  that  he  had. 


THE  TWELVE  WILD  DUCKS. 


THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  queen  who  was 
out  driving  one  winter  after  a  fresh  fall  of  snow. 
When  she  had  been  driving  some  time  her  nose 
began  to  bleed  and  she  got  out  of  the  sledge. 
While  she  was  standing  by  the  fence  looking  at  the 
red  blood  on  the  white  snow  she  began  thinking 
that  she  had  twelve  sons,  but  no  daughters  ;  so  she 
said  to  herself :  "  If  I  had  a  daughter  as  white  as 
snow  and  as  red  as  blood  I  should  not  care  what 
became  of  my  sons."  The  words  were  scarcely  out 
of  her  mouth  when  a  witch  came  up  to  her. 

"  You  shall  have  a  daughter,"  said  she,  "  and  she 
shall  be  as  white  as  snow  and  as  red  as  blood. 
Your  sons  shall  then  be  mine,  but  you  can  keep 
them  with  you  until  the  child  is  christened." 


156        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

When  the  time  came  the  queen  had  a  daughter, 
and  she  was  as  white  as  snow  and  as  red  as  blood, 
just  as  the  witch  had  promised,  and  they  therefore 
called  her  Snow-white-and-rosy-red. 

There  was  great  joy  in  the  king's  palace  and  the 
queen  was  happy  beyond  description,  but  when  she 
remembered  what  she  had  promised  the  witch  she 
ordered  a  silversmith  to  make  twelve  silver  spoons, 
one  for  each  prince ;  she  also  let  him  make  one 
more,  which  she  gave  to  Snow-white-and-rosy-red. 
As  soon  as  the  princess  was  christened  the  princes 
were  changed  into  twelve  wild  ducks  which  flew 
away  and  no  more  was  seen  of  them.  Away  they 
were  and  away  they  remained. 

The  princess  grew  up  tall  and  fair,  but  she  was 
often  strange  and  sad  and  no  one  knew  what  ailed 
her.  One  evening  the  queen  also  felt  very  sad,  for 
she  was  no  doubt  troubled  whenever  she  thought  of 
her  sons,  so  she  said  to  Snow-white-and-rosy-red  : 

"  Why  are  you  so  sad,  my  daughter  ?  If  there  is 
anything  you  want  you  shall  have  it." 

"  Oh,  I  think  it  is  so  lonely  here,"  said  the  prin 
cess.  "  Every  one  has  brothers  and  sisters,  but  I 
am  all  alone  and  have  none.  It  is  that  which 
makes  me  so  sad." 

"You  have  had  some  brothers,  my  daughter," 
said  the  queen.  "I  had  twelve  sons,  who  were 
your  brothers,  but  I  gave  them  all  away  to  get 
you,"  she  said,  and  then  she  told  her  the  whole 
story. 

When  the  princess  heard  this  she  had  no  peace. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.         157 

She  must  and  would  set  out  to  find  her  brothers. 
The  queen  cried  and  wept,  but  it  was  of  no  avail, 
for  the  princess  thought  she  was  the  cause  of  it  all, 
and  at  last  she  left  the  palace  and  set  out  on  her 
search. 

She  walked  and  walked  so  far  out  in  the  wide 
world  that  no  one  would  believe  such  a  frail  maiden 
could  walk  so  far. 

One  day  when  she  had  been  walking  a  long,  long 
while  in  a  great,  big  forest  she  became  tired  and 
sat  down  on  a  tussock  and  there  she  fell  asleep. 
She  dreamed  she  went  further  into  the  forest  and 
came  to  a  small,  log  hut  and  there  she  found  her 
brothers.  Just  then  she  awoke  and  straight  in 
front  of  her  she  saw  a  path  in  the  greensward  lead 
ing  further  into  the  forest.  She  followed  this, 
and  after  a  long  while  she  came  to  just  such  a  little 
log  hut  as  she  had  dreamed  about. 

When  she  got  inside  she  found  no  one  there,  but 
there  were  twelve  beds,  and  twelve  stools,  and 
twelve  spoons,  and  twelve  of  everything  that  was 
in  the  place.  When  she  saw  this  she  became  so 
glad,  she  had  not  felt  so  glad  for  many  years ;  for 
she  knew  at  once  that  her  brothers  lived  there  and 
that  it  was  they  who  owned  the  beds,  the  stools, 
and  the  spoons.  She  began  to  make  the  fire  and 
the  beds,  and  to  sweep  out  the  room,  and  cook  the 
food,  and  to  tidy  everything  as  best  she  could. 

After  she  had  done  the  cooking  she  had  some 
food  herself,  but  she  forgot  to  take  her  spoon  from 
the  table.  She  then  crept  under  the  youngest 
brother's  bed  and  lay  down  there. 


158        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

No  sooner  had  she  done  this  than  she  heard  a 
whizzing  sound  in  the  air  and  all  the  twelve  wild 
ducks  came  flying  in,  but  as  soon  as  they  had  passed 
the  threshold  they  at  once  became  princes  again. 

"How  nice  and  warm  it  is  here!"  they  said. 
"Heaven  bless  the  one  who  has  made  our  fire  and 
cooked  such  good  food  for  us."  And  so  they  each 
took  their  silver  spoon  and  sat  down  to  eat.  But 
when  each  had  taken  his  own  there  was  still  one 
left  lying  on  the  table  and  it  was  so  like  the  others 
that  they  could  not  tell  the  difference.  They  then 
looked  at  one  another  in  great  wonder. 

"  It  is  our  sister's  spoon,"  they  said,  "  and  if  the 
spoon  is  here,  she  cannot  be  far  away  herself." 

"  If  it  is  our  sister's  spoon  and  we  find  her  here, 
she  ought  to  be  killed ;  for  she  is  the  cause  of  all 
our  sufferings,"  said  the  eldest  of  the  princes,  and 
this  the  sister  heard  as  she  lay  under  the  bed. 

"  No,"  said  the  youngest,  "  it  would  be  a  shame 
to  kill  her  for  it ;  she  cannot  be  blamed  that  we 
suffer.  If  any  one  is  the  cause  of  it,  it  is  our  own 
mother."  They  then  began  to  search  for  her  high 
and  low,  and  at  last  they  searched  under  all  the  beds, 
and  when  they  came  to  that  of  the  youngest  prince 
they  found  her  and  dragged  her  out. 

The  eldest  prince  again  said  she  ought  to  be  killed, 
but  she  cried  and  prayed  so  pitifully  for  herself : 

"  Oh,  pray  do  not  kill  me,"  she  said ;  "  I  have  been 
wandering  about  for  many  years  searching  for  you. 
If  I  could  save  you,  I  would  willingly  give  my 
life !" 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.         159 

"  If  you'll  set  us  free  you  shall  live ;  for  if  you 
will  you  can,"  said  they. 

"  Only  tell  ine  how  it  can  be  done,  and  I'll  do  it, 
whatever  it  may  be,"  said  the  princess. 

"  You  must  gather  cotton-grass,"  said  the  princes, 
"  and  this  you  must  card  and  spin  and  weave ; 
when  you  have  done  that,  you  must  cut  out  and 
make  twelve  caps,  twelve  shirts,  and  twelve  hand 
kerchiefs  with  the  cloth,  one  for  each  of  us ;  and 
while  you  do  that,  you  must  neither  speak,  nor 
laugh,  nor  weep.  If  you  can  do  all  that,  we  are 
saved." 

"  But  where  shall  I  get  the  cotton-grass  for  so 
many  handkerchiefs  and  caps  and  shirts  ?"  said  their 
sister. 

"  That  we  will  show  you,"  said  the  princes ;  and 
so  they  took  her  with  them  to  a  great,  big  moor, 
which  was  covered  with  cotton-grass,  waving  in  the 
wind  and  glistening  in  the  sun,  so  that  it  shone  like 
snow  a  long  way  off. 

The  princess  had  never  seen  so  much  before.  She 
set  to  work  at  once  to  pluck  and  gather  the  best  as 
fast  as  she  could,  and  in  the  evening  when  she 
came  home  she  began  carding  and  spinning  yarn 
from  the  down  of  the  cotton-grass. 

Thus  all  went  well  for  a  long  time.  She  gath 
ered  the  grass  and  carded  it,  and  in  the  meantime 
she  looked  after  the  house  for  her  brothers.  She 
cooked  their  food  and  made  their  beds  for  them. 
In  the  evening  they  came  flying  home  as  wild 
ducks,  and  at  night  they  were  princes;  but  i&  the 


160        FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

morning  they  flew  away  again,  and  were  wild  ducks 
the  whole  of  the  day. 

But  then  it  happened  while  she  was  on  the  moor 
gathering  cotton-grass  one  day — and  if  I  don't  make 
a  mistake  it  was  the  last  time  she  had  to  go  there 
— that  a  young  king,  who  governed  that  country, 
was  out  shooting  and  came  riding  across  the  moor. 
When  he  saw  her  he  stopped  and  wondered  who 
the  beautiful  maiden  could  be  who  was  wandering 
about  gathering  cotton-grass.  He  asked  her,  but 
got  no  answer,  and  he  then  asked  her  again  and 
wondered  still  more  who  she  could  be. 

He  took  such  a  fancy  to  her  that  he  wanted  to 
take  her  home  with  him  to  the  palace  and  marry 
her.  He  told  his  servants  to  take  her  and  place  her 
next  him  on  his  horse. 

The  princess  wrung  her  hands,  and  made  signs  to 
them,  pointing  to  the  bags  in  which  she  had  all  her 
work;  and  when  the  king  understood  that  she 
wanted  these  with  her  he  told  his  servants  to 
take  the  bags  with  them. 

When  the  princess  saw  this  she  became  contented, 
for  the  king  was  both  good  and  handsome,  and  he 
was  as  kind  and  gentle  to  her  as  a  child  to  a  doll. 

When  they  came  home  to  the  palace,  and  the  old 
queen,  who  was  the  king's  stepmother,  saw  Snow- 
white-and-rosy-red  she  became  so  angry  and  jealous 
because  she  was  so  beautiful  that  she  said  to  the 
king : 

"  Can't  you  see  that  this  woman  whom  you  have 
taken  with  you  and  want  to  marry  is  a  witch ;  she 
neither  speaks,  nor  laughs,  nor  weeps." 


She  was  on  the  Moor  gathering  cotton  grass. — Page  160. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.        161 

The  king  did  not  listen  to  what  she  said,  but 
married  Snow-white-and-rosy-red,  and  they  lived  in 
great  joy  and  splendor ;  but  for  all  that  she  did  not 
forget  she  had  to  make  the  shirts  and  caps  for  her 
brothers. 

Before  the  year  was  over  the  young  queen  had  a 
little  prince,  and  this  made  old  queen  still  more 
angry  and  jealous.  In  the  night  she  stole  into  the 
room  where  the  queen  slept,  took  the  child  and 
threw  it  into  the  snake-pit ;  she  then  cut  the  young 
queen's  finger  and  smeared  the  blood  on  her  mouth 
and  went  to  the  king. 

"  Come  and  see,"  she  said,  "  whom  you  have  taken 
for  your  queen  ;  she  has  eaten  her  own  child !" 

The  king  then  became  so  distressed  that  he 
nearly  wept,  and  said  : 

"  I  suppose  it  must  be  true,  since  I  have  seen  it 
with  my  own  eyes,  but  surely  she  will  not  do  it 
again.  This  time  I  will  spare  her  life." 

Before  the  next  year  was  out  she  had  another  son, 
and  the  same  thing  happened  again.  The  king's 
stepmother  became  still  more  jealous  and  angry 
she  stole  into  the  queen's  bedroom  while  she  slept, 
took  her  child  and  threw  it  into  the  snake-pit,  cut 
the  queen's  finger,  smeared  the  blood  round  her 
mouth,  and  then  told  the  king  that  she  had  eaten 
this  child  also. 

You  can  hardly  imagine  how  distressed  the  king 
became,  and  then  he  said : 

"  I  suppose  it  must  be  true,  since  I  have  seen  it 
with  my  own  eyes ;  but  surely  she  will  not  do  it 
again,  and  I'll  spare  her  life  this  time  also." 


162        FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

Before  the  following  year  was  over  the  queen  had 
a  daughter,  whom  the  old  queen  also  took  and 
threw  into  the  snake-pit.  While  the  young  queen 
slept  she  cut  her  finger  and  smeared  the  blood 
around  her  mouth,  and  then  went  to  the  king  and 
said  : 

"  Now  come  and  see  if  it  isn't  true  what  I  have 
said,  that  she  is  a  witch ;  for  now  she  has  eaten  her 
third  child  also." 

The  king's  sorrow  was  so  great  there  was  no  end 
to  it.  He  could  not  spare  her  life  any  longer,  but 
was  obliged  to  give  orders  that  she  should  be  burned 
alive. 

When  the  pile  was  lighted,  and  she  was  about  to 
be  placed  on  it,  she  made  signs  to  the  people  to  take 
twelve  boards  and  place  them  round  the  pile.  On 
these  she  laid  all  the  handkerchiefs,  and  caps,  and 
shirts  for  her  brothers ;  but  the  left  sleeve  was 
wanting  in  the  youngest  brother's  shirt,  for  she  had 
not  been  able  to  get  it  ready.  No  sooner  was  this 
done  than  they  heard  a  whiz  and  a  whirr  in  the 
air,  and  the  twelve  wild  ducks  came  flying  across 
from  the  forest.  Each  one  took  his  clothes  in  his 
bill  and  flew  off. 

"  You  can  see  now,"  said  the  wicked  queen  to  the 
king,  "  she  is  really  a  witch  ;  make  haste  and  burn 
her  before  the  pile  is  burned  out." 

"  Oh,"  said  the  king,  "  we  have  plenty  of  wood ; 
the  forest  is  close  at  hand.  I  want  to  wait  a  bit, 
for  I  should  like  to  see  what  the  end  of  all  this  will 
be." 


There  lay  the  three  children  playing  with  snakes  and  toads.— Page  163, 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAS.  NORTH.        163 

Just  then  the  twelve  princes  came  riding  along 
the  road,  all  as  handsome  and  well-made  as  one 
could  wish  to  see ;  but  the  youngest  prince  had  a 
duck's  wing  instead  of  a  left  arm. 

"  What  does  all  this  mean  ?"  asked  the  princes. 

"  My  queen  is  to  be  burned  because  she  is  a 
witch,  and  has  eaten  her  own  children,"  answered 
the  king. 

"  She  has  not  eaten  her  children,"  said  the  prince. 
"  Speak,  sister  !  Now  that  you  have  saved  us,  save 
yourself !" 

Then  Snow-white-and-rosy-red  spoke  and  told 
them  how  all  had  happened,  that  every  time  a  child 
was  born  the  old  queen,  the  king's  stepmother,  had 
stolen  into  her  room  in  the  night,  taken  the  child 
from  her,  and  cut  her  finger,  and  smeared  the  blood 
around  her  mouth. 

The  princes  then  took  the  king  and  led  him  to  the 
snake-pit.  There  lay  the  three  children  playing 
with  snakes  and  toads,  and  finer  children  you  could 
not  see  anywhere.  The  king  took  them  with  him, 
and  carried  them  to  his  stepmother,  and  asked  her 
what  punishment  she  thought  ought  to  be  given  to 
any  one  who  could  be  wicked  enough  to  betray  an 
innocent  queen  and  three  innocent  children. 

"  He  ought  to  be  tied  between  twelve  wild  horses, 
and  torn  to  pieces,"  said  the  old  queen. 

"  You  have  pronounced  your  own  doom,  and  now 
you  will  have  to  submit  to  it,"  said  the  king.  And 
so  the  wicked  old  queen  was  tied  between  twelve 
wild  horses  and  torn  to  pieces. 


164        FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH, 

But  Snow-white-and-rosy-red  took  the  king  and 
her  children  and  the  twelve  princes  to  her  parents 
and  told  them  all  that  had  happened.  There  was 
now  great  joy  and  gladness  over  the  whole  king 
dom  because  the  princess  was  saved  and  because  she 
had  also  set  free  her  twelve  brothers. 


THE   BEAR   AND   THE   FOX. 

I.    SLIP  PINE-KOOT,  GBIP  FOX-FOOT. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  bear,  who  sat  on  a 
sunny  hillside  taking  a  nap.  Just  then  a  fox  came 
slinking  by  and  saw  him. 

"  Aha !  Have  I  caught  you  napping,  grandfather  ? 
See  if  I  don't  play  you  a  trick  this  time !"  said  Rey 
nard  to  himself. 

He  then  found  three  wood-mice  and  laid  them  on 
a  stump  of  a  tree  just  under  the  bear's  nose. 

"  Boo !  Bruin !  Peter  the  hunter  is  just  behind 
that  stump !"  shouted  the  fox  right  into  the  bear's 
ear,  and  then  took  to  his  heels  and  made  off  into  the 
wood. 

The  bear  woke  at  once,  and  when  he  saw  the 
three  mice  he  became  so  angry  that  he  lifted  his 


166       FAIRY  TALES   FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

paw  and  was  just  going  to  strike  them,  for  he 
thought  it  was  they  who  had  shouted  in  his  ear. 
But  just .  then  he  saw  Reynard's  tail  between  the 
bushes  and  he  set  off  at  such  a  speed  that  the 
branches  crackled  under  him,  and  Bruin  was  soon 
so  close  upon  Reynard  that  he  caught  him  by  the 
right  hind  leg  just  as  he  was  running  into  a  hole 
under  a  pine  tree. 

Reynard  was  now  in  a  fix ;  but  he  was  not  to  be 
outwitted,  and  he  cried  : 

"  Slip  pine-root,  grip  fox-foot,"  and  so  the  bear  let 
go  his  hold ;  but  the  fox  laughed  far  down  in  the 
hole  and  said : 

"  I  sold  you  that  time,  also,  grandfather  !" 

"  Out  of  sight  is  not  out  of  mind  !"  said  the  bear, 
who  was  in  a  fine  fury. 

II.    THE   BEAR   AND    THE    FOX   MAKE    A  WAGER. 

The  other  morning,  when  Bruin  came  trudging 
across  the  moor  with  a  fat  pig,  Master  Reynard  was 
lying  on  a  stone  by  the  moorside. 

"  Good-day,  grandfather  !"  said  the  fox.  "  What 
nice  thing  have  you  got  there  ?" 

"  Pork,"  said  the  bear. 

"  I  have  got  something  tasty  as  well,"  said  the 
fox. 

"  What's  that  ?"  said  the  bear. 

"  It's  the  biggest  bees'  nest  I  ever  found,"  said 
Reynard. 

"Ah,  indeed/'  said  the  bear,  grinning,  and  his 
mouth  began  to  water ;  he  thought  a  little  honey 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.        167 

would  be  so  nice.     "  Shall  we  change  victuals  ?"  he 
said. 

"  No,  I  won't  do  that,"  said  Eeynard.  But  they 
made  a  wager  about  naming  three  kinds  of  trees. 
If  the  fox  could  say  them  quicker  than  the  bear  he 
was  to  have  one  bite  at  the  pig ;  but  if  the  bear 
could  say  them  quicker  he  was  to  have  one  suck  at 
the  bees'  nest.  The  bear  thought  he  would  be  able 
to  suck  all  the  honey  up  at  one  gulp. 

"  Well,"  said  the  fox,  "  that's  all  well  and  good, 
but  if  I  win  you  must  promise  to  tear  off  the 
bristles  where  I  want  to  have  a  bite,"  he  said. 

"  Well,  I  suppose  I  must,  since  you  are  too  lazy 
yourself,"  said  the  bear. 

Then  they  began  to  name  the  trees. 

"  Spruce,  fir,  pine,"  growled  the  bear.  His  voice 
was  very  gruff.  But  all  these  were  only  different 
names  of  one  kind  of  tree. 

"Ash,  aspen,  oak,"  screeched  the  fox,  so  that  the 
forest  resounded.  He  had  thus  won  the  bet,  and  so 
he  jumped  down,  took  the  heart  out  of  the  pig  at 
one  bite  and  tried  to  run  off.  But  the  bear  was 
angry,  because  he  had  taken  the  best  bit  of  the 
whole  pig,  and  seized  hold  of  him  by  his  tail  and 
held  him  fast. 

"  Just  wait  a  bit,"  said  the  bear,  who  was  furious. 

"Never  mind,  grandfather;  if  you'll  let  me  go 
you  shall  have  a  taste  of  my  honey,"  said  the  fox. 

When  the  bear  heard  this  he  let  go  his  hold  and 
the  fox  jumped  up  on  the  stone  after  the  honey. 

"  Over  this  nest,"  said  Keynard,  "  I'll  put  a  leaf. 


168       FAIRY    TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

and  in  the  leaf  there  is  a  hole,  through  which  you 
can  suck  the  honey."  He  then  put  the  nest  right 
up  under  the  bear's  nose,  pulled  away  the  leaf, 
jumped  on  to  the  stone  and  began  grinning  and 
laughing ;  for  there  was  neither  honey  nor  honey 
comb  in  the  nest.  It  was  a  wasps'  nest  as  big  as  a 
man's  head,  full  of  wasps,  and  out  they  swarmed 
and  stung  the  bear  in  his  eyes  and  ears  and  on  his 
mouth  and  snout.  He  had  so  much  to  do  with 
scratching  them  off  him  that  he  had  no  time  to  think 
of  Reynard. 

Ever  since  the  bear  has  been  afraid  of  wasps. 

III.    THE  BEAR  AND  THE  FOX  GO  INTO  PARTNERSHIP. 

Once  the  fox  and  the  bear  made  up  their  minds 
to  have  a  field  in  common.  They  found  a  small 
clearing -far  away  in  the  forest,  where  they  sowed 
rye  the  first  year. 

"  Now  we  must  share  and  share  alike,1'  said  Rey 
nard  ;  "  if  you  will  have  the  roots  I  will  have  the 
tops,"  he  said. 

Yes,  Bruin  was  quite  willing  ;  but  when  they  had 
thrashed  the  crop  the  fox  got  all  the  corn,  while 
the  bear  got  nothing  but  the  roots  and  tares. 

Bruin  didn't  like  this,  but  the  fox  said  it  was 
only  as  they  had  agreed. 

"This  year  I  am  the  gainer,"  said  the  fox; 
"  another  year  it  will  be  your  turn ;  you  can  then 
have  the  tops  and  I  will  be  satisfied  with  the  roots." 

Next  spring  the  fox  asked  the  bear  if  he  didn't 
think  turnips  would  be  the  right  thing  for  that 
year. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 


160 


"  Yes,  that's  better  food  than  corn,"  said  the 
bear  ;  and  the  fox  thought  the  same. 

When  the  autumn  came  the  fox  took  the  turnips, 
but  the  bear  only  got  the  tops. 

The  bear  then  became  so  angry  that  he  parted 
company  then  and  there  with  Reynard. 


IV.    REYNARD   WANTS    TO   TASTE    HORSEFLESH. 

One  day  the  bear  was  lying  eating  a  horse  which 
he  had  killed.  Reynard  was  about  again  and  came 
slinking  along,  his  mouth  watering  for  a  tasty  bit 
of  the  horseflesh. 


170      FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

He  sneaked  in  and  out  and  round  about  till  he 
came  up  behind  the  bear,  when  he  made  a  spring  to 
the  other  side  of  the  carcass,  snatching  a  piece  as 
he  jumped  across. 

The  bear  was  not  slow  either ;  he  made  a  dash 
after  Reynard  and  caught  the  tip  of  his  red  tail  in 
his  paw.  Since  that  time  the  fox  has  always  had  a 
white  tip  to  his  tail. 

"  Wait  a  bit,  Reynard,  and  come  here,"  said  the 
bear,  "  and  I'll  teach  you  how  to  catch  horses." 

Yes,  Reynard  was  quite  willing  to  learn  that,  but 
he  didn't  trust  himself  too  near  the  bear. 

"  When  you  see  a  horse  lying  asleep  in  a  sunny 
place,"  said  the  bear,  "  you  must  tie  yourself  fast 
with  the  hair  of  his  tail  to  your  brush,  and  then 
fasten  your  teeth  in  his  thigh,"  he  said. 

Before  long  the  fox  found  a  horse  lying  asleep  on 
a  sunny  hillside ;  and  so  he  did  as  the  bear  had  told 
him  ;  he  knotted  and  tied  himself  well  to  the  horse 
with  the  hair  of  the  tail  and  then  fastened  his  teeth 
into  his  thigh. 

Up  jumped  the  horse  and  began  to  kick  and  gal 
lop,  so  that  Reynard  was  dashed  against  stock  and 
stone,  and  was  so  bruised  and  battered  that  he 
nearly  lost  his  senses. 

All  at  once  a  hare  rushed  by.  "  Where  are  you 
off  to  in  such  a  hurry,  Reynard  ?"  said  the  hare. 

"  I'm  having  a  ride,  Bunny  !"  said  the  fox. 

The  hare  sat  up  on  his  hind  legs  and  laughed  till 
the  sides  of  his  mouth  split  right  up  to  his  ears,  at 
the  thought  of  Reynard  having  such  a  grand  ride  ; 


FAIRY    TALES   FROM    THE   FAR  NORTH.         171 

but  since  then  the  fox  has  never  thought  of  catch 
ing  horses  again. 

That  time  it  was  Bruin  who  for  once  had  the 
better  of  Keynard ;  otherwise  they  say  the  bear  is 
as  simple-minded  as  the  trolls. 


TEE   COCK   WHO  FELL   INTO   THE 
BEEWING-YAT. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  cock  and  a  hen, 
who  were  out  in  a  field  scratching  and  scraping  and 
pecking. 

All  at  once  the  hen  found  a  barleycorn,  and  the 
cock  found  a  bur  of  hops,  and  so  they  made  up 
their  minds  they  would  make  some  malt  and  brew 
beer  for  Christmas. 

"  I  plucked  the  barley  and  I  malted  the  corn  and 
brewed  the  beer,  and  the  beer  is  good,"  cackled  the 
hen. 

"Is  the  wort  strong  enough  ?"  said  the  cock,  and 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.      173 

flew  up  to  the  edge  of  the  vat  to  taste  it ;  but  when 
he  stooped  down  to  take  a  sip  he  began  flapping 
with  his  wings  and  fell  on  his  head  into  the  vat  and 
was  drowned. 

When  the  hen  saw  this  she  was  quite  beside  her 
self  ;  she  flew  on  to  the  hearth  and  began  to  scream 
and  cry : 

"  Got,  got,  got,  drowned !  got,  got,  got,  drowned !" 
and  this  she  went  on  crying  all  the  time  and  would 
not  stop. 

"  What  is  the  matter  with  you,  Mother  Tup,  since 
you  are  crying  and  grieving  so  ?"  asked  the  hand- 
quern. 

u  Oh,  Father  Tup  has  fallen  into  the  brewing- vat 
and  got  drowned  and  there  he  lies  dead !"  said  the 
hen ;  "  that's  the  reason  I  cry  and  grieve." 

"  Well,  if  I  can't  do  anything  else  I  will  grind  and 
groan,"  said  the  hand-quern,  and  began  grinding  as 
fast  as  it  could. 

When  the  stool  heard  this  it  said : 

"  What's  the  matter  with  you,  quern,  since  you 
groan  and  grind  so  fast  ?" 

"  Oh,  Father  Tup  has  fallen  into  the  brewing- vat 
and  got  drowned;  Mother  Tup  is  sitting  on  the 
hearth,  crying  and  grieving  ;  therefore  I  grind  and 
groan,"  said  the  hand-quern. 

"Well,  if  I  can't  do  anything  else  I  shall  creak," 
said  the  stool,  and  began  creaking  and  cracking. 

This  the  door  heard,  so  it  said : 

"What's  the  matter  with  you?  Why  are  you 
creaking,  stool  ?" 


174        FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

"  Oh,  Father  Tup  has  fallen  into  the  brewing- vat 
and  got  drowned ;  Mother  Tup  is  sitting  on  the 
hearth  crying  and  grieving  and  the  hand-quern  is 
grinding  and  groaning ;  therefore  I  creak  and  crack 
and  crackle,"  said  the  stool. 

"  Well,  if  I  can't  do  anything  else  I'll  bang  and 
slam  and  whine  and  whistle,"  said  the  door, 
and  began  opening  and  shutting  and  slamming  and 
banging  till  it  went  through  one's  bones  and  mar 
row  to  hear  it. 

This  the  dust-bin  heard. 

"  Why  are  you  slamming  and  banging  like  that, 
door  ?"  said  the  bin. 

"  Oh,  Father  Tup  fell  into  the  brewing- vat  and 
got  drowned ;  Mother  Tup  is  sitting  on  the  hearth 
crying  and  grieving;  the  hand-quern  is  grinding 
and  groaning ;  the  stool  is  creaking  and  cracking ; 
therefore  I  keep  slamming  and  banging,"  said  the 
door. 

"  Well,  if  I  can't  do  anything  else  I'll  fume  and 
smoke,"  said  the  dust-bin,  and  began  fuming  and 
smoking  and  sending  the  dust  up  in  clouds  all  over 
the  room. 

This  the  hay  rake  saw,  as  it  stood  peeping  in 
through  the  window.  • 

"  Why  are  you  raising  the  dust  like  that,  dust 
bin  ?"  asked  the  rake. 

"  Oh,  Father  Tup  fell  into  the  brewing-vat  and  got 
drowned ;  Mother  Tup  is  sitting  on  the  hearth  cry 
ing  and  grieving ;  the  hand-quern  is  grinding  and 
groaning ;  the  stool  is  creaking  and  cracking ;  the 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.         175 

door  is  slamming  and  banging;  therefore  I  keep 
fuming  and  smoking,"  said  the  dust-bin. 

"  Well,  if  I  can't  do  anything  else  I'll  rake  and 
rend,"  said  the  rake,  and  began  rending  and  raking. 

This  the  aspen  tree  saw  as  it  looked  on. 

"  Why  do  you  rend  and  rake  like  that,  rake  ?"  said 
the  tree. 

"  Oh,  father  Tup  fell  into  the  brewing- vat  and  got 
drowned ;  Mother  Tup  is  sitting  on  the  hearth  cry 
ing  and  grieving ;  the  hand-quern  is  grinding  and 
groaning  ;•  the  stool  is  creaking  and  cracking ;  the 
door  is  slamming  and  banging ;  the  dust-bin  is  fum 
ing  and  smoking;  therefore  I  keep  rending  and 
raking,"  said  the  rake. 

"Well,  if  I  can't  do  anything  else,"  said  the 
aspen,  "  I  will  quiver  and  quake." 

This  the  birds  noticed.  "  Why  do  you  quiver  and 
quake  like  that?"  said  the  birds  to  the  tree. 

"  Oh,  Father  Tup  fell  into  the  brewing-vat  and  got 
drowned  ;  Mother  Tup  is  sitting  on  the  hearth  cry 
ing  and  grieving ;  the  hand-quern  is  grinding  and 
groaning ;  the  stool  is  creaking  and  cracking ;  the 
door  is  slamming  and  banging;  the  dust-bin  is  fum 
ing  and  smoking  ;  the  rake  is  rending  and  raking ; 
therefore  I  quiver  and  quake,"  said  the- aspen. 

"  Well,  if  we  can't  do  anything  else  we  will  pluck 
off  our  feathers,"  said  the  birds,  and  began  pecking 
and  plucking  till  the  feathers  flew  about  the  farm 
like  snow. 

The  farmer  stood  looking  on,  and  when  he  saw 
the  feathers  flying  about  he  asked  the  birds: 


176        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"  Why  are  you  plucking  off  your  feathers  like 
that,  birds  ?" 

"  Oh,  Father  Tup  fell  into  the  brewing-vat  and 
got  drowned  ;  Mother  Tup  is  sitting  on  the  hearth 
crjdng  and  grieving ;  the  hand-quern  is  grinding 
and  groaning  ;  the  stool  is  creaking  and  cracking ; 
the  door  is  slamming  and  banging;  the  dust-bin  is 
fuming  and  smoking ;  the  rake  is  rending  and 
raking  ;  the  aspen  is  quivering  and  quaking  :  there 
fore  we  keep  pecking  and  plucking,"  said  the  birds. 

"  Well,  if  I  can't  do  anything  else  I  will  pull  the 
besoms  to  pieces,"  said  the  farmer,  and  began  tug 
ging  and  pulling  the  besoms  to  pieces,  so  that  the 
twigs  flew  about,  both  east  and  west. 

His  wife  was  boiling  the  porridge  for  supper 
when  she  saw  this. 

"  Why  are  you  pulling  the  besoms  to  pieces, 
husband  ?"  said  she. 

"  Oh,  Father  Tup  fell  into  the  brewing-vat  and 
got  drowned ;  Mother  Tup  is  sitting  on  the  hearth 
crying  and  grieving;  the  hand-quern  is  grinding 
and  groaning ;  the  stool  is  creaking  and  cracking  ; 
the  door  is  slamming  and  banging  ;  the  dust-bin  is 
fuming  and  smoking;  the  rake  is  rending  and 
raking ;  the  aspen  is  quivering  and  quaking ;  the 
birds  are  pecking  and  plucking  off  their  feathers : 
therefore  I  am  pulling  the  besom  to  pieces,"  said 
the  man. 

"Well,  then  I'll  daub  the  walls  all  over  with 
porridge,"  she  said.  And  she  set  about  it  there  and 
then,  and  took  one  ladleful  after  another  and 


The  man  began  pulling  the  besom  to  pieces,  and  his  wife  took  one  ladleful  of 
porridge  after  another  and  daubed  it  all  over  the  place.— Page  176. 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.      17? 

smeared  the  porridge  all  over  the  walls,  so  that  no 
one  could  see  what  they  were  made  of. 

Then  they  kept  the  burial  feast  of  the  cock  who 
fell  into  the  brewing- vat.  And  if  you  don't  believe 
it,  you  had  better  go  there  and  taste  both  the  beer 
and  the  porridge. 


THE  COCK 

AND 
THE  FOX. 


THERE  was  once  a  cock 
who  stood  on  a  dunghill, 
crowing  and  flapping  his 
wings. 

A  fox  just  then  came 
strolling  by. 

"  Good-day,"  said  the 
fox ;  "  that's  a  very  fine 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.          179 

crow,  but  can  you  stand  on  one  leg  and  crow  with 
your  eyes  shut,  as  your  father  did  ?" 

"  I  can  easily  do  that,'7  said  the  cock,  and  stood 
on  one  leg  and  crowed.  But  he  only  shut  one  eye, 
and  then  he  strutted  about  flapping  his  wings  as  if 
he  had  done  something  grand, 

"  That  was  very  niee,^  said  the  fox  ;  "  almost  as 
nice  as  when  the  parson  chants  in  church  ;  but  can 
you  stand  on  one  leg  and  crow  with  both  your  eyes 
shut  at  the  same  time  ?  I  scarcely  think  you  can," 
said  Reynard.  "  No  ;  that  father  of  yours,  he  was 
really  wonderful." 

"  Oh,  I  can  do  that  as  well,"  said  the  cock,  and 
began  to  crow  standing  on  one  leg  and  closing  both 
his  eyes,  when  all  of  a  sudden  the  fox  made  a  dash 
at  him,  caught  him  by  the  neck,  and  slung  him 
across  his  back,  and  before  he  had  finished  his  crow 
Reynard  had  set  off  with  him  for  the  forest  as 
quickly  as  he  could. 

When  they  got  under  an  old  pine  tree  Reynard 
threw  the  cock  down,  put  his  paw  on  his  breast, 
and  was  going  to  help  himself  to  a  tasty  bit. 

"  You  are  not  so  pious  as  your  father,  Reynard," 
said  the  cock  ;  "  he  always  crossed  himself  and  said 
grace  before  his  meals." 

Reynard  thought  he  ought  to  show  a  little  piety, 
so  he  let  go  his  hold  and  was  just  going  to  say  grace 
when  up  flew  the  cock  and  settled  in  the  tree 
above. 

"  I'll  be  even  with  you  yet,"  said  the  fox  to  him 
self,  and  went  off.  He  soon  returned  with  a  couple 
of  drippings  which  the  woodcutters  had  left  behind. 


180        FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

The  cock  kept  peeping  and  peering  to  see  what 
it  could  be. 

"  What  have  you  got  there  ?"  he  said. 

"  Oh,  some  letters  I  have  got  from  the  Pope  in 
Rome,"  said  the  fox.  "  Won't  you  help  me  to  read 
them,  for  I  am  getting  rather  shortsighted  myself  ?'5 

"  I  would  with  pleasure,  but  I  dare  not  just  now," 
said  the  cock ;  "  there  is  a  man  coming  along  with 
a  gun;  I  see  him  from  behind  the  tree — I  see  him  !" 

When  the  fox  heard  the  cock  prating  about  a  man 
with  a  gun  he  took  to  his  heels  as  fast  as  he  could. 

That  time  it  was  the  cock  who  outwitted  Reynard. 


THE  THKEE   PKINCESSES  IN   THE   BLUE 
MOUNTAIN. 

THERE  were  once  upon  a  time  a  king  and  queen 
who  had  no  children,  and  they  took  it  so  much  to 
heart  that  they  hardly  ever  had  a  happy  moment. 


182        FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE    FAR   NORTH. 

One  day  the  king  stood  in  the  portico  and  looked 
out  over  the  big  meadows  and  all  that  was  his. 
But  he  felt  he  could  have  no  enjoyment  out  of  it 


all,  since  he  did  not  know  what  would  become  of  i£ 
after  his  time.  As  he  stood  there  pondering,  an  old 
beggar-woman  came  up  to  him  and  asked  him  for 
a  trifle  in  heaven's  name.  She  greeted  him  and 
courtesied,  and  asked  what  ailed  the  king,  since  he 
looked  so  sad. 

"You  can't  do  anything  to  help  me,  my  good 
woman,"  said  the  king ;  "  it's  no  use  telling  you." 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.        183 

"  I  am  not  so  sure  about  that,"  said  the  beggar- 
woman.  "  Very  little  is  wanted  when  luck  is  in  the 
way.  The  king  is  thinking  that  he  has  no  heir  to 
his  crown  and  kingdom,  but  he  need  not  mourn  on 
that  account,"  she  said.  "  The  queen  shall  have  three 
daughters,  but  great  care  must  be  taken  that  they 
do  not  come  out  under  the  open  heavens  before 
they  are  all  fifteen  years  old ;  otherwise  a  snow 
drift  will  come  and  carry  them  away." 


When  the  time  came  the  queen  had  a  beautiful 
baby  girl ;  the  year  after  she  had  another,  and  the 
third  year  she  also  had  a  girl. 

The  king  and  queen  were  glad  beyond  all  meas 
ure  ;  but  although  the  king  was  very  happy,  he 
did  not  forget  to  set  a  watch  at  the  palace  door,  so 
that  the  princesses  should  not  get  out. 

As  they  grew  up  they  became  both  fair  and 
beautiful,  and  all  went  well  with  them  in  every 
way.  Their  only  sorrow  was  that  they  were  not 


184       FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

allowed  to  go  out  and  play  like  other  children. 
For  all  they  begged  and  prayed  their  parents,  and 
for  all  they  besought  the  sentinel,  it  was  of  no 
avail ;  go  out  they  must  not  before  they  were 
fifteen  years  old,  all  of  them. 

So  one  day,  not  long  before  the  fifteenth  birth 
day  of  the  youngest  princess,  the  king  and  the 
queen  were  out  driving,  and  the  princesses  were 
standing  at  the  window  and  looking  out.  The  sun 
was  shining,  and  everything  looked  so  green  and 
beautiful  that  they  felt  they  must  go  out,  happen 
what  might.  So  they  begged  and  entreated  and 
urged  the  sentinel,  all  three  of  them,  that  he  should 
let  them  down  into  the  garden.  "  He  could  see  for 
himself  how  warm  and  pleasant  it  was ;  no  snowy 
weather  could  come  on  such  a  day."  Well,  he 
didn't  think  it  looked  much  like  it  either,  and  if 
they  must  go  they  had  better  go,  the  soldier  said , 
but  it  must  only  be  for  a  minute,  and  he  himself 
would  go  with  them  and  look  after  them. 

When  they  had  got  down  into  the  garden  they 
ran  up  and  down,  and  filled  their  laps  with  flowers 
and  green  leaves,  the  prettiest  they  could  find.  At 
last  they  could  manage  no  more,  but  just  as  they 
were  going  indoors  they  caught  sight  of  a  large 
rose  at  the  other  end  of  the  garden.  It  was  many 
times  prettier  than  any  they  had  gathered,  so  they 
must  have  that  also.  But  just  as  they  bent  down 
to  take  the  rose  a  big  dense  snowdrift  came  and 
carried  them  away. 

There  was  great  mourning  over  the  whole  country, 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.        185 

and  the  king  made  known  from  all  the  churches 
that  any  one  who  could  save  the  princesses  should 
have  half  the  kingdom  and  his  golden  crown  and 
whichever  princess  he  liked  to  choose. 

You  can  well  understand  there  were  plenty  who 
wanted  to  gain  half  the  kingdom,  and  a  princess  into 
the  bargain  ;  so  there  were  people  of  both  high  and 
low  degree  who  set  out  for  all  parts  of  the  country. 
But  there  was  no  one  who  could  find  the  princesses, 
or  even  get  any  tidings  of  them. 

When  all  the  grand  and  rich  people  in  the  country 
had  had  their  turn,  a  captain  and  a  lieutenant  came 
to  the  palace,  and  wanted  to  try  their  luck.  The 
king  fitted  them  out  both  with  silver  and  gold,  and 
wished  them  success  on  their  journey. 

Then  came  a  soldier,  who  lived  with  his  mother 
in  a  little  cottage  some  way  from  the  palace.  He 
had  dreamed  one  night  that  he  also  was  trying  to 
find  the  princesses.  "When  the  morning  came  he 
still  remembered  what  he  had  dreamed,  and  told 
his  mother  about  it. 

"  Some  witchery  must  have  got  hold  of  you," 
said  the  woman,  "  but  you  must  dream  the  same 
thing  three  nights  running,  else  there  is  nothing  in 
it."  And  the  next  two  nights  the  same  thing  hap 
pened  ;  he  had  the  same  dream,  and  he  felt  he  must 
go.  So  he  washed  himself  and  put  on  his  uniform, 
and  went  into  the  kitchen  at  the  palace.  It  was 
the  day  after  the  captain  and  the  lieutenant  had  set 
out. 
jl  a"  You  had  better  go  home  again,"  said  the  king, 


186      FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"  the  princesses  are  beyond  your  reach,  I  should  say ; 
and  beside  I  have  spent  so  much  money  oa  outfits 
that  I  have  nothing  left  to-day.  You  had  better 
come  back  another  time." 

"If  I  go,  I  must  go  to-day,"  said  the  soldier. 
"  Money  I  do  not  want ;  I  only  need  a  drop  in  my 
flask  and  some  food  in  my  wallet,"  he  said ;  "  but 
it  must  be  a  good  walletful — as  much  meat  and 
bacon  as  I  can  carry." 


""-v^r  i^^r"^ 
"~:r:"^"~^Ltcr       •- 


Yes,  that  he  might  have  if  that  was  all  he 
wanted. 

So  he  set  off,  and'  he  had  not  gone  many  miles 
before  he  overtook  the  captain  and  the  lieutenant. 

**  Where  are  you  going  ?"  asked  the  captain,  when 
he  saw  the  man  in  uniform. 

"  I  am  going  to  try  if  I  can  find  the  princesses," 
answered  the  soldier. 

"  So  are  we,"  said  the  captain,  "  and  since  your 


^£*2L£i£22     „"•''*  '-      '  '    •    .•gsrv  •.«..•  •.:-*i'&ss&-fii^'(f.  IK ..^gagr^a.^ 

The  Princesses  begged  and  entreated  the  sentinel  to  let  them  down  into  the 
«wxlen,— Page  186. 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.        187 

errand  is  the  same  you  may  keep  company  with  us, 
for  if  we  don't  find  them  you  are  not  likely  to  find 
them  either,  my  lad,"  said  he. 

When  they  had  gone  awhile  the  soldier  left  the 
highroad,  and  took  a  path  into  the  forest. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?"  said  the  captain ;  "  it  is 
best  to  follow  the  highroad." 

"  That  may  be,"  said  the  soldier,  "  but  this  is  my 
way." 

He  kept  to  the  path,  and  when  the  others  saw 
this  they  turned  round  and  followed  him.  Away 
they  went  further  and  further,  far  across  big  moors 
and  along  narrow  valleys. 

At  last  it  became  lighter,  and  when  they  had  got 
out  of  the  forest  altogether  they  came  to  a  long 
bridge,  which  they  had  to  cross.  But  on  that 
bridge  a  bear  stood  on  guard.  He  rose  on  his  hind 
legs  and  came  toward  them,  as  if  he  wanted  to  eat 
them. 

"  What  shall  we  do  now  ?"  said  the  captain. 

"  They  say  that  the  bear  is  fond  of  meat,"  said  the 
soldier,  and  then  he  threw  a  fore-quarter  to  him, 
and  so  they  got  past.  But  when  they  reached 
the  other  end  of  the  bridge,  they  saw  a  lion  which 
came  roaring  toward  them  with  open  jaws  as  if  he 
wanted  to  swallow  them. 

"  I  think  we  had  better  turn  to  right-about — we 
shall  never  be  able  to  get  past  him  alive,"  said  the 
captain. 

"  Oh,  I  don't  think  he  is  so  very  dangerous,"  said 
the  soldier ;  "  I  have  heard  that  lions  are  very  fond 


188         FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

of  bacon,  and  I  have  half  a  pig  in,  my  wallet ;"  and 
then  he  threw  a  ham  to  the  lion,  ^who  began  eating 
and  knawing,  and  thus  they  got  past  him  also. 

In  the  evening  they  came  to  a  fine  big  house. 
Each  room  was  more  gorgeous  than  the  other ;  all 
was  glitter  and  splendor  wherever  they  looked  ; 
but  that  did  not  satisfy  their  hunger.  The  captain 
and  the  lieutenant  went  round  rattling  their  money, 
and  wanted  to  buy  some  food;  but  they  saw  no 
people  nor  could  they  find  a  crumb  of  anything  in 


the  house,  so  the  soldier  offered  them  some  food 
from  his  wallet  which  they  were  not  too  proud  to 
accept,  nor  did  they  want  any  pressing.  They 
helped  themselves  of  what  he  had  as  if  they  had 
never  tasted  food  before. 

The  next  day  the  captain  said  they  would  have 
to  go  out  shooting  and  try  to  g$t  something  to  live 
upon.  Close  to  the  house  was  a  large  forest  where 
there  were  plenty  of  hares  and  birds.  The  lieuten 
ant  was  to  remain  at  home  and  cook  the  remainder 
of  the  food  in  the  soldier's  wallet.  In  the  mean 
time  the  captain  and  the  soldier  shot  so  much  game 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        189 

that  they  were  hardly  able  to  carry  it  home.  When 
they  came  to  the  door  they  found  the  lieutenant  in 
such  a  terrible  plight  that  he  was  scarcely  able  to 
open  the  door  to  them. 

"  What  is  the  matter  with  you  ?"  said  the  captain. 
The  lieutenant  then  told  them  that  as  soon  as  they 
were  gone,  a  tiny  little  man  with  a  long  beard, 
who  went  on  crutches,  came  in  and  asked  so  plaint 
ively  for  a  penny  ;  but  no  sooner  had  he  got  it  than 
he  let  it  fall  on  the  floor,  and  for  all  he  raked  and 
scraped  with  his  crutch  he  was  not  able  to  get  hold 
of  it,  so  stiff  and  stark  was  he. 

"  I  pitied  the  poor  old  body,"  said  the  lieutenant, 
"  and  so  I  bent  down  to  pick  up  the  penny,  but  then 
he  was  neither  stiff  nor  stark  any  longer.  He 
began  to  belabor  me  with  his  crutches  till  very  soon 
I  was  unable  to  move  a  limb." 

"  You  ought  to  be  ashamed  of  yourself !  you,  one 
of  the  king's  officers,  to  let  an  old  cripple  give  you 
a  thrashing,  and  then  tell  people  of  it  into  the  bar 
gain  !"  said  the  captain.  "  Pshaw !  to-morrow  I'll 
stop  at  home  and  then  you'll  hear  another 
story." 

The  next  day  the  lieutenant  and  the  soldier  went 
out  shooting  and  the  captain  remained  at  home  to 
do  the  cooking  and  look  after  the  house.  But  if  he 
fared  no  worse,  he  certainly  fared  no  better  than  the 
lieutenant.  In  a  little  while  the  old  man  came  in 
and  asked  for  a  penny.  He  let  it  fall  as  soon  as  he 
got  it ;  gone  it  was  and  could  not  be  found.  So  he 
asked  the  captain  to  help  him  to  find  it,  and  the 


190       FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

captain,  without  giving  a  thought,  bent  down  to 
look  for  it.  But  no  sooner  was  he  on  his  knees  than 
the  cripple  began  belaboring  him  with  his  crutches, 
and  every  time  the  captain  tried  to  rise  he  got  a 
blow  which  sent  him  reeling.  When  the  others 
came  home  in  the  evening  he  still  lay  on  the  same 
spot  and  could  neither  see  nor  speak. 

The  third  day  the  soldier  was  to  remain  at  home, 
while  the  other  two  went  out  shooting.  The  captain 
said  he  must  take  care  of  himself,  "  for  the  old  fel 
low  will  soon  put  an  end  to  you,  my  lad,"  said  he. 

"  Oh,  there  can't  be  much  life  in  one  if  such  an 
old  crook  can  take  it,"  said  the  soldier. 

They  were  no  sooner  outside  the  door  than  the 
old  man  came  in  and  asked  for  a  penny  again. 

"  Money  I  have  never  owned,"  said  the  soldier, 
"  but  food  I'll  give  you  as  soon  as  it  is  ready,"  said 
he,  "  but  if  we  are  to  get  it  cooked,  you  must  go  and 
cut  the  wood." 

"  That  I  can't,"  said  the  old  man. 

"  If  you  can't  you  must  learn,"  said  the  soldier. 
"  I  will  soon  show  you.  Come  along  with  me  down 
to  the  woodshed."  There  he  dragged  out  a  heavy 
log  and  cut  a  cleft  in  it  and  drove  in  a  wedge  till  the 
cleft  deepened. 

"  Now  you  must  lie  down  and  look  right  along 
the  cleft  and  you'll  soon  learn  how  to  cut  wood," 
said  the  soldier.  "  In  the  meantime  I'll  show  you 
how  to  use  the  ax." 

The  old  man  was  not  sufficiently  cunning  and  did 
as  he  was  told;  he  lay  down  and  looked  steadily 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.        191 

along  the  log.  When  the  soldier  saw  that  the  old 
man's  beard  had  got  well  into  the  cleft  he  struck  out 
the  wedge  ;  the  cleft  closed  and  the  old  man  was 
caught  by  the  beard.  The  soldier  began  to  beat  him 
with  the  ax  handle,  and  then  swung  the  ax  round 
his  head  and  vowed  that  he  would  split  his  skull  if 
he  did  not  tell  him,  there  and  then,  where  the 
princesses  were. 

"  Spare  my  life,  spare  my  life,  and  I'll  tell  you !" 
said  the  old  man.  "  To  the  east  of  the  house  there 
is  a  big  mound  ;  on  top  of  the  mound  you  must  dig 
out  a  square  piece  of  turf  and  then  you  will  see  a 
big  stone  slab.  Under  that  there  is  a  deep  hole 
through  which  you  must  let  yourself  down  and  you'll 
then  come  to  another  world  where  you  will  find 
the  princesses.  But  the  way  is  long  and  dark  and  it 
goes  both  through  fire  and  water."  . 

When  the  soldier  got  to  know  this  he  released  the 
old  man,  who  was  not  long  in  making  off. 

When  the  captain  and  lieutenant  came  home  they 
were  surprised  to  find  the  soldier  alive.  He  told 
them  what  had  happened  from  first  to  last,  where 
the  princesses  were,  and  how  they  should  find  them. 
They  became  as  pleased  as  if  they  had  already 
found  them,  and  when  they  had  had  some  food  they 
took  with  them  a  basket  and  as  much  rope  as  they 
could  find,  and  all  three  set  off  to  the  mound.  There 
thev  first  dug  out  the  turf  just  as  the  old  man  had 
told  them,  and  underneath  they  found  a  big  stone 
slab,  which  it  took  all  their  strength  to  turn  over. 
They  then  began  to  measure  how  deep  it  was ;  they 


192       FAIRY    TALES  FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

joined  on  ropes  both  two  and  three  times,  but  they 
were  no  nearer  the  bottom  the- last  time  than  the 
first.  At  last  they  had  to  join  all  the  ropes  they  had, 
both  the  coarse  and  fine,  and  then  they  found  it 
reached  the  bottom. 

The  captain  was,  of  course,  the  first  who  wanted 
to  descend.  "  But  when  I  tug  at  the  rope  you  must 
make  haste  to  drag  me  up  again,"  he  said.  He  found 
the  way  both  dark  and  unpleasant,  but  he  thought 
he  would  go  on  as  long  as  it  became  no  worse.  But 
all  at  once  he  felt  ice-cold  water  spouting  about  his 
ears ;  he  became  frightened  to  death  and  began  tug 
ging  at  the  rope. 

The  lieutenant  was  the  next  to  try,  but  it  fared 
no  better  with  him.  No  sooner  had  he  got  through 
the  flood  of  water  than  he  saw  a  blazing  fire  yawn 
ing  beneath  him,  which  so  frightened  him  that  he 
also  turned  back. 

The  soldier  then  got  into  the  bucket,  and  down 
he  went  through  fire  and  water,  right  on  till  he 
came  to  the  bottom,  where  it  was  so  pitch  dark  that 
he  could  not  see  his  hand  before  him.  He  dared 
not  let  go  the  basket,  but  went  round  in  a  circle, 
feeling  and  fumbling  about  him.  At  last  he  dis 
covered  a  gleam  of  light  far,  far  away  like  the 
dawn  of  day,  and  he  went  on  in  that  direction. 

When  he  had  gone  a  bit  it  began  to  grow  light 
around  him,  and  before  long  he  saw  a  golden  sun 
rising  in  the  sky  and  everything  around  him  became 
as  bright  and  beautiful  as  if  in  a  fairy  world. 

First  he  came  to  some  cattle,  which  were  so  fat 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.         193 

that  their  hides  glistened  a  long  way  off,  and  when 
he  had  got  past  them  he  came  to  a  fine  big  palace. 
He  walked  through  many  rooms  without  meeting 
anybody.  At  last  he  heard  the  hum  of  a  spinning 
wheel,  and  when  he  entered  the  room  he  found  the 
eldest  princess  sitting  there  spinning  copper  yarn  ; 
the  room  and  everything  in  it  was  of  brightly 
polished  copper. 

"  Oh,  dear,  oh,  dear !  what  are  Christian  people 
doing  here  ?"  said  the  princess.  "  Heaven  preserve 
you !  what  do  you  want?" 

"  I  want  to  set  you  free  and  get  you  out  of  the 
mountain,"  said  the  soldier. 

"  Pray  do  not  stay.  If  the  troll  comes  home  he 
will  put  an  end  to  you  at  once ;  he  has  three 
heads,"  said  she. 

"I  do  not  care  if  he  has  four,"  said  the  soldier. 
"  I  am  here,  and  here  I  shall  remain." 

"  Well,  if  you  will  be  so  headstrong,  I  must  see  if 
I  can  help  you,"  said  Jthe  princess. 

She  then  told  him  to  creep  behind  the  big 
brewing-vat  which  stood  in  the  front  hall ;  mean 
while  she  would  receive  the  troll  and  scratch  his 
heads  till  he  went  to  sleep. 

And  when  I  go  out  and  call  the  hens  you  must 
make  haste  and  come  in,"  she  said.  "  But  you  must 
first  try  if  you  can  swing  the  sword  which  is  lying 
on  the  table."  No,  it  was  too  heavy,  he  could  not 
even  move  it.  He  had  then  to  take  a  strengthening 
draught  from  the  horn,  which  hung  behind  the  door ; 
after  that  he  was  just  able  to  stir  it,  so  he  took 


194        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE   FAR  NORTH. 

another  draught  and  then  he  could  lift  it.  At  last 
he  took  a  right  big  draught  and  he  could  swing  the 
sword  as  easily  as  anything. 

All  at  once  the  troll  came  home ;  he  walked  so 
heavily  that  the  palace  shook. 

"  Ugh,  ugh !  I  smell  Christian  flesh  and  blood 
in  my  house,"  said  he. 

"  Yes,"  answered  this  princess,  "  a  raven  flew  past 
here  just  now  and  in  his  beak  he  had  a  human  bone, 
which  he  dropped  down  the  chimney ;  I  threw  it 
out  and  swept  and  cleaned  up  after  it,  but  I 
suppose  it  still  smells." 

"  So  it  does,"  said  the  troll. 

"  But  come  and  lie  down  and  I'll  scratch  your 
heads,"  said  the  princess ;  "  the  smell  will  be  gone 
by  the  time  you  wake." 

The  troll  was  quite  willing,  and  before  long  he 
fell  asleep  and  began  snoring.  When  she  saw  he 
was  sleeping  soundly  she  placed  some  stools  and 
cushions  under  his  heads  and  went  to  call  the  hens. 
The  soldier  then  stole  into  the  room  with  the  sword 
and  with  one  blow  cut  all  the  three  heads  off  the 
troll. 

The  princess  was  as  pleased  as  a  fiddler,  and  went 
with  the  soldier  to  her  sisters,  so  that  he  could  also 
set  them  free.  First  of  all  they  went  across  a 
courtyard  and  then  through  many  long  rooms  till 
they  came  to  a  big  door. 

"  Here  you  must  enter ;  here  she  is,"  said  the 
princess.  When  he  opened  the  door  he  found  him 
self  in  a  large  hall,  where  everything  was  of  pure 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        195 

silver ;  there  sat  the  second  sister  at  a  silver  spin 
ning-wheel. 

"  Oh,  dear ;  oh,  dear !"  she  said.  "  What  do  you 
want  here  ?" 

"  I  want  to  set  you  free  from  the  troll,"  said  the 
soldier. 

"  Pray  do  not  stay,  but  go,"  said  the  princess. 
"  If  he  finds  you  here  he  will  take  your  life  on  the 
spot." 

"  That  would  be  awkward — that  is  if  1  don't  take 
his  first,"  said  the  soldier. 

"  We'll,  since  you  will  stay,"  she  said ;  "  you  will 
have  to  creep  behind  the  big  brewing- vat  in  the 
front  hall.  But  you  must  make  haste  and  come  as 
soon  as  you  hear  me  calling  the  hens." 

First  of  all  he  had  to  try  if  he  was  able  to  swing 
the  troll's  sword,  which  lay  on  the  table ;  it  was 
much  larger  and  heavier  than  the  first  one ;  he  was 
hardly  able  to  move  it.  He  then  took  three 
draughts  from  the  horn  and  he  could  then  lift  it, 
and  when  he  had  taken  three  more  he  could  handle 
it  as  if  were  a  rolling-pin. 

Shortly  afterward  he  heard  a  heavy,  rumbling 
noise  that  was  quite  terrible,  and  directly  after 
ward  a  troll  with  six  heads  came  in. 

"  Ugh,  ugh  !"  he  said,  as  soon  as  he  got  his  noses 
inside  the  door.  "  I  smell  Christian  blood  and  bone 
in  my  house." 

"  Yes,  just  think !  A  raven  came  flying  past  here 
with  a  thigh-bone,  which  he  dropped  down  the 
ch:'inney,"  said  the  princess.  "I  threw  it  out,  but 


196         FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

the  raven  brought  it  back  again.  At  last  I  got  rid 
of  it  and  made  haste  to  clean  the  room,  but  I  sup 
pose  the  smell  is  not  quite  gone,"  she  said. 

"No,  I  can  smell  it  well,"  said  the  troll;  but  he 
was  tired,  and  put  his  heads  in  the  princess'  lap 
and  she  went  on  scratching  them  till  they  all  fell 
a-snoring.  Then  she  called  the  hens,  and  the  soldier 
came  and  cut  off  all  the  six  heads  as  if  they  were 
set  on  cabbage  stalks. 

She  was  no  less  glad  than  her  eldest  sister,  as  you 
may  imagine,  and  danced  and  sang ;  but  in  the 
midst  of  their  joy  they  remembered  their  youngest 
sister.  They  went  with  the  soldier  across  a  large 
courtyard  and  after  walking  through  many,  many 
rooms  he  came  to  the  hall  of  gold,  where  the  third 
sister  was. 

She  sat  at  a  golden  spinning-wheel  spinning  gold 
yarn,  and  the  room  from  ceiling  to  floor  glistened 
and  glittered  till  it  hurt  one's  eyes. 

"  Heaven  preserve  both  you  and  me,  what  do  you 
want  here?"  said  the  princess.  "Go,  go,  else  the 
troll  will  kill  us  both." 

"Just  as  well  two  as  one,"  answered  the  soldier. 
The  princess  cried  and  wept ;  but  it  was  all  of  no 
use,  he  must  and  would  remain.  Since  there  was 
no  help  for  it  he  would  have  to  try  if  he  could  use 
the  troll's  sword  on  the  table  in  the  front  hall. 
But  he  was  only  just  able  to  move  it ;  it  was  still 
larger  and  heavier  than  the  other  two  swords. 

He  then  had  to  take  the  horn  down  from  the 
wall  and  take  three  draughts  from  it,  but  was  oily 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.        197 

just  able  to  stir  the  sword.  When  he  taken  three 
more  draughts  he  could  lift  it,  and  when  he  had 
taken  another  three  he  swung  it  as  easily  as  if  it 
had  been  a  feather. 

The  princess  then  settled  with  the  soldier  to  do 
the  same  as  her  sisters  had  done.  As  soon  as  the 
troll  was  well  asleep  she  would  call  the  hens,  and 
he  must  then  make  haste  and  come  in  and  put  an 
end  to  the  troll. 

All  of  a  sudden  they  heard  such  a  thundering, 
rumbling  noise,  as  if  the  walls  and  roof  were 
tumbling  in. 

"  Ugh !  Ugh !  I  smell  Christian  blood  and  bone 
in  my  house,"  said  the  troll,  sniffing  with  all  his 
nine  noses. 

"  Yes,  you  never  saw  the  like !  Just  now  a  raven 
flew  past  here  and  dropped  a  human  bone  down 
the  chimney.  I  threw  it  out,  but  the  raven  brought 
it  back  and  this  went  on  for  some  time,"  said  the 
princess  ;  but  she  got  it  buried  at  last,  she  said,  and 
she  had  both  swept  and  cleaned  the  place,  but  she 
supposed  it  still  smelled. 

"  Yes,  I  can  smell  it  well,"  said  the  troll. 

"  Come  here  and  lie  down  in  my  lap  a-nd  I  will 
scratch  your  heads,"  said  the  princess.  "  The  smell 
will  be  all  gone  when  you  awake." 

He  did  so,  and  when  he  was  snoring  at  his  best 
she  put  stools  and  cushions  under  the  heads  so  that 
she  could  get  away  to  call  the  hens.  The  soldier 
then  came  in  in  his  stockinged  feet  and  struck  at 
the  troll,  so  that  eight  of  the  heads  fell  off  at  one 


198        FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

blow.  But  the  sword  was  too  short  and  did  not 
reach  far  enough;  the  ninth  head  woke  up  and 
began  to  roar. 

"Ugh !  Ugh !     I  smell  a  Christian." 

"  Yes,  here  he  is,"  answered  the  soldier,  and 
before  the  troll  could  get  up  and  seize  hold  of  him 
the  soldier  struck  him  another  blow  and  the  last 
head  rolled  along  the  floor. 

You  can  well  imagine  how  glad  the  princesses  be 
came  now  that  they  no  longer  had  to  sit  and  scratch 
the  trolls'  heads ;  they  did  not  know  how  they  could 
do  enough  for  him  who  had  saved  them.  The 
youngest  princess  took  off  her  gold  ring  and  knotted 
it  in  his  hair.  They  then  took  with  them  as  much 
gold  and  silver  as  they  thought  they  could  carry 
and  set  off  on  their  way  home. 

As  soon  as  they  tugged  at  the  rope  the  captain 
and  the  lieutenant  pulled  up  the  princesses,  the  one 
after  the  other.  But  when  they  were  safely  up  the 
soldier  thought  it  was  foolish  of  him  not  to  have 
gone  up  before  the  princesses,  for  he  had  not  very 
much  belief  in  his  comrades.  He  thought  he  would 
first  try  them,  so  he  put  a  heavy  lump  of  gold  in 
the  basket  and  got  out  of  the  way.  When  the 
basket  was  halfway  up  they  cut  the  rope  and  the 
lump  of  gold  fell  to  the  bottom  with  such  a  crash 
that  the  pieces  flew  about  his  ears. 

"  Now  we  are  rid  of  him,"  they  said,  and  threat 
ened  the  princesses  with  their  life  if  they  did  not 
say  that  it  was  they  who  had  saved  them  from  the 
trolls.  They  were  forced  to  agree  to  thisj  much 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.        199 

against  their  will,  and  especially  the  youngest 
princess ;  but  life  was  precious,  and  so  the  two  who 
were  strongest  had  their  way. 

When  the  captain  and  lieutenant  got  home  with 
the  princesses  you  may  be  sure  there  were  great  re 
joicings  at  the  palace.  The  king  was  so  glad  he 
didn't  know  which  leg  to  stand  on ;  he  brought  out 
his  best  wine  from  his  cupboard  and  wished  the  two 
officers  welcome.  If  they  had  never  been  honored 
before  they  were  honored  now  in  full  measure  and 
no  mistake.  They  walked  and  strutted  about  the 
whole  of  the  day,  as  if  they  were  the  cocks  of  the 
walk,  since  they  were  now  going  to  have  the  king 
for  father-in-law.  For  it  was  understood  they 
should  each  have  whichever  of  the  princesses  they 
liked  and  half  the  kingdom  between  them.  They 
both  wanted  the  youngest  princess,  but  for  all  they 
prayed  and  threatened  her  it  was  of  no  use;  she 
would  not  hear  or  listen  to  either. 

They  then  asked  the  king  if  they  might  have 
twelve  men  to  watch  over  her ;  she  was  so  sad  and 
melancholy  since  she  had  been  in  the  mountain 
that  they  were  afraid  she  might  do  something  to 
herself. 

Yes,  that  they  might  have  and  the  king  himself 
told  the  watch  they  must  look  well  after  her  and 
follow  her  wherever  she  went  and  stood. 

They  then  began  to  prepare  for  the  wedding  of  the 
two  eldest  sisters ;  it  should  be  such  a  wedding  as 
never  was  heard  or  spoken  of  before,  and  there  was 
no  end.  to  the  brewing  and  the  baking  and  the 
slaughtering. 


200         FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

In  the  meantime  the  soldier  walked  and  strolled 
about  down  in  the  other  world.  He  thought  it  was 
hard  that  he  should  see  neither  people  nor  daylight 
any  more ;  but  he  would  have  to  do  something,  he 
thought,  and  so  for  many  days  he  went  about  from 
room  to  room  and  opened  all  the  drawers  and  cup 
boards  and  searched  about  on  the  shelves  and  looked 
at  all  the  fine  things  that  were  there.  At  last  he 
came  to  a  drawer  in  a  table,  in  which  there  lay  a 
golden  key ;  he  tried  this  key  to  all  the  locks  he 
could  find,  but  there  was  none  it  fitted  till  he  came 
to  a  little  cupboard  over  the  bed  and  in  that  he 
found  an  old  rusty  whistle.  "  I  wonder  if  there  is 
any  sound  in  it,"  he  thought,  and  put  it  to  his 
mouth.  ~No  sooner  had  he  whistled  than  he  heard 
a  whizzing  and  a  whirring  from  all  quarters,  and 
such  a  large  flock  of  birds  swept  down  that  they 
blackened  all  the  field  in  which  they  settled. 

"  What  does  our  master  want  to-day  ?"  they 
asked. 

If  he  were  their  master,  the  soldier  said,  he  would 
like  to  know  if  they  could  tell  him  how  to  get  up  to 
the  earth  again.  No,  none  of  them  knew  anything 
about  that.  "  But  our  mother  has  not  yet  arrived," 
they  said ;  "  if  she  can't  help  you  no  one  can." 

So  he  whistled  once  more,  and  shortly  heard 
something  flapping  its  wings  far  away,  and  then  it 
began  to  blow  so  hard  that  he  was  carried  away 
between  the  houses  like  a  wisp  of  hay  across  the 
courtyard,  and  if  he  had  not  caught  hold  of  the 
fence  he  would  no  doubt  have  been  blown  away 
altogether. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.         201 

A  big  eagle — bigger  than  you  can  imagine — then 
swooped  down  in  front  of  him. 

"  You  come  rather  sharply,"  said  the  soldier. 

u  As  you  whistle  so  I  come,"  answered  the  eagle. 
So  he  asked  her  if  she  knew  any  means  by  which 
he  could  get  get  away  from  the  world  in  which 
they  were. 

"  You  can't  get  away  from  here  unless  you  can 
fly,"  said  the  eagle,  "  but  if  you  will  slaughter 
twelve  oxen  for  me,  so  that  I  can  have  a  really  good 
meal,  I  will  try  and  help  you.  Have  you  got  a 
knife?" 

"  No,  but  I  have  a.  sword,"  he  said.  "When  the 
eagle  had  swallowed  the  twelve  oxen  she  asked  the 
soldier  to  kill  one  more  for  victuals  on  the  journey. 
"  Every  time  I  gape  you  must  be  quick  and  fling  a 
piece  into  my  mouth,"  she  said,  "  else  I  shall  not  be 
able  to  carry  you  up  to  earth." 

He  did  as  she  asked  him  and  hung  two  large  bags 
of  meat  round  her  neck  and  seated  himself  among 
her  feathers.  The  eagle  then  began  to  flap  her 
wings  and  off  they  went  through  the  air  like  the 
wind.  It  was  as  much  as  the  soldier  could  do  to 
hold  on,  and  it  was  with  the  greatest  difficulty  he 
managed  to  throw  the  pieces  of  flesh  into  the  eagle's 
mouth  every  time  she  opened  it. 

At  last  the  day  began  to  dawn,  and  the  eagle  was 
then  almost  exhausted  and  began  flapping  with 
her  wings,  but  the  soldier  was  prepared  and  seized 
the  hist  hind-quarter  and  flung  it  to  her.  Then  she 
gained  strength  and  brought  him  up  to  earth. 


202         FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

When  she  had  sat  and  rested  awhile  at  the  top  of 
a  large  pine  tree,  she  set  off  with  him  again  at  such 
a  pace  that  flashes  of  lightning  were  seen  both  by 
sea  and  land  wherever  they  went. 

Close  to  the  palace  the  soldier  got  off  and  the 
eagle  flew  home  again,  but  first  she  told  him  that 
if  he  at  any  time  should  want  her  he  need  only 
blow  the  whistle  and  she  would  be  there  at  once. 

In  the  meantime  everything  was  ready  at  the 
palace,  and  the  time  approached  when  the  captain 
and  lieutenant  were  to  be  married  with  the  two 
eldest  princesses,  who,  however,  were  not  much 
happier  than  their  youngest  sister ;  scarcely  a  day 
passed  without  weeping  and  mourning,  and  the 
nearer  the  wedding  day  approached  the  more 
sorrowful  did  they  become. 

At  last  the  king  asked  what  was  the  matter  with 
them ;  he  thought  it  was  very  strange  that  they 
were  not  merry  and  happy  now  that  they  were 
saved  and  had  been  set  free  and  were  going  to  be 
married.  They  had  to  give  some  answer,  and  so 
the  eldest  sister  said  they  never  would  be  happy 
any  more  unless  they  could  get  such  checkers  as 
they  had  played  with  in  the  blue  mountain. 

That,  thought  the  king,  could  be  easily  managed, 
and  so  he  sent  word  to  all  the  best  and  cleverest 
goldsmiths  in  the  country  that  they  should  make 
these  checkers  for  the  princesses.  For  all  they 
tried  there  was  no  one  who  could  make  them.  At 
last  all  the  goldsmiths  had  been  to  the  palace  except 
one,  and  he  was  an  old,  infirm  man  who  had  not 


The  old  goldsmith  went  to  the  palace  and  told  the  king  he  would  undertake  to 
make  the  checkers  for  the  princesses.-Page  203. 


FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.          203 

done  any  work  for  many  years  except  odd  jobs,  by 
which  he  was  just  able  to  keep  himself  alive.  To 
him  the  soldier  went  and  asked  to  be  apprenticed. 
The  old  man  was  so  glad  to  get  him,  for  he  had  not 
had  an  apprentice  for  many  a  day,  that  he  brought 
out  a  flask  from  his  chest  and  sat  down  to  drink 
with  the  soldier.  Before  long  the  drink  got  into 
his  head,  and  when  the  soldier  saw  this  he  per 
suaded  him  to  go  up  to  the  palace  and  tell  the  king 
that  he  would  undertake  to  make  the  checkers  for 
the  princesses. 

He  was  ready  to  do  that  on  the  spot ;  he  had 
made  finer  and  grander  things  in  his  day,  he  said. 
When  the  king  heard  there  was  some  one  outside 
who  could  make  the  checkers  he  was  not  long  in 
coming  out. 

"  Is  it  true  what  you  say,  that  you  can  make  such 
checkers  as  my  daughters  want  ?"  he  asked. 

"  Yes,  it  is  no  lie,"  said  the  goldsmith ;  that  he 
would  answer  for. 

" That's  well !"  said  the  king.  "Here  is  the  gold 
to  make  them  with  ;  but  if  you  do  not  succeed  you 
will  lose  your  life,  since  you  have  come  and  offered 
yourself,  and  they  must  be  finished  in  three  days." 

The  next  morning  when  the  goldsmith  had  slept 
off  the  effects  of  the  drink  he  was  not  quite  so  con 
fident  about  the  job.  He  Availed  and  wept  and  blew 
up  his  apprentice,  who  had  got  him  into  such  a 
scrape  while  he  was  drunk.  The  best  thing  would 
be  to  make  short  work  of  himself  at  once,  he  said, 
for  there  could  be  no  hope  for  his  life ;  when  the 


204-    FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

best  and  grandest  goldsmiths  could  not  make  such 
checkers  was  it  likely  that  he  could  do  it  ? 

"Don't  fret  on  that  account,"  said  the  soldier, 
"  but  let  me  have  the  gold  and  I'll  get  the  checkers 
ready  in  time ;  but  I  must  have  a  room  to  myself  to 
work  in,"  he  said.  This  he  got  and  thanks  into  the 
bargain. 

The  time  wore  on  and  the  soldier  did  nothing  but 
lounge  about  and  the  goldsmith  began  to  grumble 
because  he  would  not  begin  with  the  work. 

"  Don't  worry  yourself  about  it,"  said  the  soldier, 
"  there  is  plenty  of  time !  If  you  are  not  satisfied 
with  what  I  have  promised  you  had  better  make 
them  yourself."  The  same  thing  went  on  both  that 
day  and  the  next,  and  when  the  smith  heard  neither 
hammer  nor  file  from  the  soldier's  room  the  whole 
of  the  last  day,  he  quite  gave  himself  up  for  lost ;  it 
was  now  no  use  to  think  any  longer  about  saving 
his  life,  he  thought. 

But  when  the  night  came  on  the  soldier  opened 
the  window  and  blew  his  whistle.  The  eagle  then 
came  and  asked  what  he  wanted. 

"  Those  gold  checkers  which  the  princesses  had  in 
the  blue  mountain,"  said  the  soldier ;  "  but  you'll 
want  something  to  eat  first,  I  suppose  ?  I  have  two 
ox  carcases  lying  ready  for  you  in  the  hayloft 
yonder ;  you  had  better  finish  them,"  he  said.  When 
the  eagle  had  done  she  did  not  tarry,  and  long 
before  the  sun  rose  she  was  back  again  with  the 
checkers.  The  soldier  then  put  them  under  his  bed 
and  lay  down  to  sleep. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.        205 

Early  next  morning  the  goldsmith  came  and 
knocked  at  his  door. 

"What  are  you  after  now  again?"  asked  the 
soldier.  "  You  rush  about  enough  in  the  day,  good 
ness  knows !  If  one  cannot  have  peace  when  one  is 
in  bed,  whoever  would  be  an  apprentice  here?" 
said  he. 

Neither  praying  nor  begging  helped  that  time ; 
the  goldsmith  must  and  would  come  in,  and  at  last 
he  was  let  in. 

And  then  you  may  be  sure  there  was  soon  an  end 
to  his  wailing. 

But  still  more  glad  than  the  goldsmith  were  the 
princesses  when  he  came  up  to  the  palace  with  the 
checkers,  and  gladdest  of  all  was  the  youngest 
princess. 

"  Have  you  made  them  yourself  ?"  she  asked. 

"  No,  if  I  must  speak  the  truth,  it  is  not  I,"  he  said, 
"but  my  apprentice,  who  has  made  them." 

"  I  should  like  to  see  that  apprentice,"  said  the 
princess.  In  fact,  all  three  wanted  to  see  him,  and 
if  he  valued  his  life  he  would  have  to  come. 

He  was  not  afraid,  either  of  women  folk  or  grand 
folk,  said  the  soldier,  and  if  it  could  be  any  amuse 
ment  to  them  to  look  at  his  rags  they  should  soon 
have  that  pleasure. 

The  youngest  princess  recognized  him  at  once ; 
she  pushed  the  soldiers  aside  and  ran  up  to  him, 
gave  him  her  hand  and  said  : 

"Good-day,  and  many  thanks  for  all  you  have 
done  for  us.  It  is  he  who  freed  us  from  the  trolls 


J506 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 


in  the  mountain,"  she  said  to  the  king.  "He  is  the 
one  I  will  have !"  and  then  she  pulled  off  his  cap  and 
showed  them  the  rin£  she  had  tied  in  his  hair. 


It  soon  came  out  how  the  captain  and  lieutenant 
had  behaved,  and  so  they  had  to  pay  the  penalty  of 
their  treachery  with  their  lives,  and  that  was  the 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.         207 

end  of  their  grandeur.  But  the  soldier  got  the 
golden  crown  and  half  the  kingdom  and  married 
the  youngest  princess. 

At  the  wedding  they  drank  and  feasted  both  well 
and  long;  for  feast  they  all  could,  even  if  they 
could  not  find  the  princesses,  and  if  they  have  not 
yet  done  feasting  and  drinking  they  must  be  at  it 
still. 


THE  WOELD'S  KEWAED. 

THEEE  was  once  a  man  who  went  into  the  wood 
to-  cut  trees  for  hurdles.  But  he  did  not  find  any 
which  were  as  long  and  straight  as  he  wanted  them 
to  be,  till  he  got  to  a  rocky  place,  where  he  heard 
groans  and  moans,  as  of  some  one  in  the  pangs  of 
death.  So  he  went  to  see  who  it  was  that  wanted 
help.  He  found  that  the  groans  came  from  under 
a  big  slab  among  the  bowlders.  It  was  so  heavy 
that  it  would  take  many  men  to  lift  it.  But  the 
man  went  into  the  wood  and  cut  down  a  tree, 
which  he  used  as  a  lever  to  lift  the  slab  with.  From 
under  it  there  called  a  dragon,  who  then  wanted  to 
eat  the  man.  But  the  man  said  he  had  saved  the 
dragon's  life,  and  it  was  base  ingratitude  to  want 
to  eat  him. 

"  May  be !"  said  the  dragon.  "  But  you  can 
easily  understand  that  1  am  hungry,  having  lain 
here  a,  hundred  years  and  tasted  no  food ;  beside, 
that  is  the  reward  one  gets  in  the  world." 

The  man  begged  and  prayed  for  his  life,  and  so 
they  agreed  that  the  first  being  they  met  should 
decide  between  them.  If  he  was  of  a  different 
opinion  to  the  dragon  the  man  should  not  lose  his 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.         209 

life,  but  if  he  thought  the  same  as  the  dragon,  the 
dragon  should  eat  the  man. 

The  first  they  met  was  an  old  dog,  who  was 
walking  along  the  road  under  the  hillside.  They 
spoke  to  him  and  asked  him  to  be  their  judge. 

"  Goodness  only  knows !  I  have  served  my 
master  faithfully  since  I  was  a  pup,"  said  the  dog  ; 
"  I  have  watched  many  a  night  and  many  a  time 
while  he  has  been  sound  asleep,  and  I  have  saved 
the  house  and  chattels  from  fire  and  thieves  more 
than  once ;  but  now,  when  I  can  neither  see  nor 
hear  any  longer,  he  wants  to  shoot  me  ;  so  I  ran 
away,  and  I  knock  about  from  place  to  place, 
sniffing  and  begging  my  way  iill  one  day  I  shall 
die  of  hunger.  No,  that  is  the  reward  one  gets  in 
this  world/'  said  the  dog. 

"  Then  I'll  eat  you !"  said  the  dragon,  and  was 
going  to  swallow  the  man ;  but  the  man  spoke  so 
well  for  himself,  and  begged  so  hard  for  K;s  life, 
that  the  dragon  agreed  that  the  next  being  they 
met  should  decide  between  them ;  and  if  he  said 
the  same  as  the  dragon  and  the  dog,  the  dragon 
should  eat  him,  and  have  a  good  meal  of  human 
flesh,  but  if  not,  the  man  should  get  off  with  his 
life. 

An  old  horse  then  came  dragging  himself  along 
the  road  just  under  the  hillside.  They  spoke  to 
him,  and  asked  him  to  judge  between  them.  Yes, 
that  he  would. 

"Well,  I  have  served  my  master  as  long  as  I  was 
tble  to  draw  and  carry,"  said  the  horse.  "I  have 


210        FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

slaved  and  worked  for  him  till  the  sweat  streamed 
from  every  hair,  and  I  have  worked  faithfully  till  I 
have  become  stiff  and  stark,  and  worn  out  with 
work  and  age ;  now  I  am  fit  for  nothing,  and  am 
not  worth  my  keep,  and  so  I  am  to  have  a  bullet, 
says  my  master.  No,  that  is  the  reward  one  gets 
in  this  world,"  said  the  horse. 

"  Then  I'll  eat  you  !"  said  the  dragon,  and  opened 
its  jaws  wide  to  swallow  the  man.  He  again  begged 
and  prayed  hard  for  his  life,  but  the  dragon  said  he 
wanted  a  mouthful  of  human  flesh  and  was  so 
hungry  that  he  could  not  wait  any  longer. 

"  Look,  there  is  some  one  coming,  just  as  if  he 
were  sent  to  be  our  judge,"  said  the  man,  as 
Reynard  came  slinking  toward  them  between  the 
bowlders.  "  Good  things  come  in  threes,"  said  the 
man  ;  "  let  us  ask  him  also,  and  if  he  judges  like  the 
others,  you  shall  eat  me  on  the  spot." 

"  Very  well,"  said  the  dragon.  He  had  also  heard 
that  all  good  things  came  in  threes,  and  so  he  would 
agree  to  that.  The  man  spoke  to  the  fox  as  he  had 
done  to  the  others. 

"  Yes,  yes,"  said  the  fox ;  but  he  took  the  man 
aside. 

"  What  will  you  give  me,  if  I  free  you  from  the 
dragon?"  he  whispered  in  the  man's  ear. 

a  You  shall  come  home  with  me  and  be  lord  and 
master  over  my  fowls  and  geese  every  Thursday 
night,"  said  the  man. 

"  This  is  a  case  which  can  only  be  settled  on  the 
spot  itself,  my  dear  dragon,"  said  the  fox.  "  I  can- 


'  This  is  a  case  which  can  only  be  settled  on  the  spot  itself,  my  dear  dragon, 
said  the  fox.— Page  210. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.        211 

not  get  into  my  head  how  such  a  large  and  mighty 
animal  as  yourself  could  find  room  under  that  slab." 

"  Well,  I  was  lying  up  here  sunning  myself,"  said 
the  dragon,  "  when  an  avalanche  came  down  the 
mountain  and  turned  the  slab  over  me." 

"  That  is  very  possible,"  said  Keynard ;  "  but  I 
cannot  understand  it,  nor  will  I  believe  it  till  I  see 
it,"  said  he. 

So  the  man  said  they  had  better  try  it,  and  the 
dragon  slipped  into  the  hole  again,  and  just  at  that 
moment  the  man  pulled  away  the  lever,  and  the 
slab  shut  down  the  dragon  again  with  a  bang. 

"  You  may  now  lie  there  till  doomsday,"  said  the 
fox,  "  since  you  had  no  pity  on  the  man  who  saved 
you."  The  dragon  yelled  and  groaned  and  prayed 
for  himself,  but  the  other  two  went  their  way. 

The  next  Thursday  evening  the  fox  set  out  for 
the  farm  to  help  himself  from  the  hen-roost,  and 
hid  himself  behind  a  heap  of  poles,  which  were 
standing  there.  "When  the  girl  went  to  give  the 
fowls  their  food,  Keynard  sneaked  in,  so  that  she 
did  not  notice  him  ;  and  no  sooner  was  she  gone 
than  he  killed  enough  for  eight  days,  and  ate  till  he 
could  not  move.  When  the  girl  came  back  in  the 
morning,  the  fox  lay  sleeping  and  snoring  in  the 
morning  sunshine,  with  all  his  four  legs  stretched 
out ;  he  was  as  sleek  and  round  as  a  big  sausage. 

The  girl  ran  to  fetch  her  mistress,  and  she  and  all 
the  others  came  back  with  sticks  and  poles,  and 
began  thrashing  Re\rnard  till  they  almost  killed 
him ;  but  at  last  when  they  thought  they  had  done 


212  FAIRY   TALES-  FROM  ;*THE  FAR  NORTH. 

for  him,  Reynard  found  a  hole  in  the  floor,  through 
which  he  slipped  out  and  set  off  limping  toward  the 
wood. 

"  Oh,  dear,  oh,  dear !"  said  Reynard ;  "  but  I  sup 
pose  that  is  the  reward  one  gets  in  this  world  1" 


THE  COMPANION. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  peasant  lad,  who 
dreamed  he  was  going  to  marry  a  princess  far  away 
in  a  strange  country,  and  she  was  as  red  and  white 
as  milk  and  blood,  and  so  rich  that  there  was  no 
end  to  her  riches.  When  he  awoke  he  thought  she 
still  stop(j^dive  before  him,  and  she  was  so  sweet 
and  beautiful  that  he  felt  he  could  not  exist  if  ho 
did  not  get  her ;  so  he  sold  what  he  had  and  set  out 
in  the  world  to  find  her. 

He  went  far  and  further  than  far,  and  in  the 
winter  he  came  to  a  country  where  &11  the  high 
roads  were  straight  and  had  no  turnings.  When 
he  had  walked  straight  on  for  a  quarter  of  a  year, 
he  came  to  a  town,  and  outside  the  church  door 
there  lay  a  large  block  of  ice  in  which  stood  a  dead 
body;  and  all  the  people  who  were  on  their  way  to 
church  spat  on  it  as  they  passed  it.  The  lad  won- 
dere\l;at  this,  and  when  the  parson  came  out  of  the 
church,  he  asked  him  what  it  all  meant. 

"He  was  a  great  evil-doer,"  said  the  parson, 
"and  was  punished  for  his  ungodliness,  and  has 
been  set  up  there  to  be  mocked  and  scoffed  at." 

"What  did  he  do  ?"  asked  the  lad. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"  When  he  was  alive,  he  was  a  vintner,"  said  the 
parson,  "and  he  mixed  his  wine  with  water."  The 
lad  did  not  think  this  a  very  wicked  deed ;  "and 
when  he  has  paid  for  it  with  his  life,"  said  he, 
"  they  might  as  well  let  him  lie  in  Christian  ground 
and  leave  him  in  peace  after  death."  But  the  par 
son  said  that  could  not  be  permitted  on  any  account, 
for  they  would  have  to  get  people  to  break  him  out 
of  the  ice;  and  money  would  be  wanted  to  buy 
burial  ground  from  the  church ;  the  grave-digger 
would  want  payment  for  the  grave,  the  owner  of 
the  church  for  the  bells,  the  clerk  for  the  singing, 
and  the  parson  for  casting  earth  on  the  coffin. 

"Do  you  think  there  is  anybody  who  will  pay 
all  this  for  an  executed  sinner?"  he  asked. 

"  Yes,"  said  the  lad.  If  he  could  only  get  him 
underground,  he  would  pay  all  the  funeral  expenses 
out  of  the  little  he  had. 

The  parson  was  still  unwilling  to  bury  him ;  but 
when  the  lad  came  with  two  men,  and  asked  him  in 
their  presence  to  perform  the  ceremony,  he  an 
swered  that  he  dared  not  refuse.  So  they  broke 
the  vintner  out  of  his  block  of  ice  and  put  him  in 
Christian  ground ;  they  tolled  the  bells,  and  sang 
over  him,  and  the  parson  cast  the  earth  upon  the 
coffin,  and  they  drank  of  the  funeral  ale  till  they 
both  cried  and  laughed.  When  the  lad  had  paid 
all  the  expenses  he  had  not  many  pennies  left  in  his 
pocket. 

He  set  out  on  the  road  again.  ,But  he  had  not 
gone  far,  before  a  man  came  after  him  and  asked 


-•ml 


..  When  the  Parson  came  out  of  the  Church,  the  lad  asked  him  what  it  all 
meant— Page  213. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.        215 

him  if  he  did  not  think  it  was  lonely  to  be  traveling 
by  himself. 

No,  the  lad  did  not  find  it  lonely  for  he  had 
always  something  to  think  about,  he  said. 

The  man  then  asked  if  he  did  not  want  a  servant. 

"  No,"  said  the  lad,  "  I  am  accustomed  to  be  my 
own  servant,  and  therefore  I  do  not  want  any  ;  but 
if  I  wanted  one  ever  so  much,  I  could  not  afford  to 
have  one,  for  I  have  no  money  to  pay  for  his  food 


or  wages." 


"  You  want  a  servant ;  that  I  know  better  than 
you."  said  the  man,  "and  you  will  want  one  you 
can  rely  upon  in  life  and  death.  If  you  will  not 
have  me  as  your  servant  you  can  take  me  as  a  com 
panion.  I  promise  you  that  you  will  find  me  use 
ful  and  it  shall  not  cost  you  a  penny.  I'll  pay  my 
own  way,  and  food  and  clothing  you  need  not 
trouble  about." 

Well,  on  those  terms  he  would  willingly  have  him 
for  a  companion,  and  after  that  they  traveled  to 
gether,  the  man  mostly  going  on  in  front  and 
showing  him  the  way.  When  they  had  traveled 
a  long  way  over  hills  and  dales  through  many 
countries  they  came  to  a  mountain  that  lay  across 
the  road. 

There  the  companion  knocked  and  asked  them  to 
open.  The  rock  opened  for  them,  and  when  they 
came  far  into  the  mountain  a  troll  woman  came 
and  offered  them  a  stool. 

"  Won't  you  take  a  seat  ?  You  must  be  tired," 
she  said. 


216        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"Take  a  seat  yourself  ?"  said  the  man.  So  she 
had  to  sit  down ;  but  when  she  had  done  so,  she 
stuck  fast  to  the  stool,  for  it  was  such  that  it  did 
not  let  go  anything  that  came  near  it.  In  the 
meantime  they  walked  about  inside  the  mountain 
and  the  companion  looked  around  him  till  he  saw  a 
sword  which  hung  over  the  door. 

He  wanted  this  very  much,  and  if  he  could  have 
it  he  promised  the  troll  woman  that  he  would  let 
her  loose. 

"No,"  she  cried,  "ask  me  for  anything  else! 
You  can  have  everything  but  that,  for  it  is  my 
Three-Sis ter-S word !"  There  were  three  sisters 
who  owned  it  together. 

"  Well,  then  you  must  sit  here  till  the  end  of  the 
world,"  said  the  man  ;  but  when  she  heard  this  she 
said  that  he  could  have  it  if  he  would  set  her  free. 
So  he  took  the  sword  and  went  away  with  it,  but 
he  left  her  sitting  on  the  stool  all  the  same. 

When  they  had  gone  far  across  some  bare  moun 
tains  and  broad  hills,  they  came  to  another  mountain 
that  lay  across  the  road.  There  the  companion 
knocked  and  asked  them  to  open.  It  happened  as 
before ;  the  rock  opened  for  them  and  when  they 
got  far  into  the  mountain  there  came  a  troll  woman 
with  a  stool  and  asked  them  to  sit  down  ;  they 
might  be  tired,  she  said. 

"  Sit  down  yourself,"  said  the  companion ;  and 
she  fared  just  as  her  sister  had  fared.  When  she 
sat  down  on  the  stool,  she  stuck  fast  to  it.  In  the 
meantime  the  lad  and  the  companion  walked  about 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.        217 

inside  the  mountain,  and  the  companion  opened  all 
the  cupboards  and  drawers  till  he  found  what  he 
searched  for.  It  was  a  ball  of  gold  yarn.  He 
wanted  this  very  much,  and  he  promised  the  troll 
woman  that  if  she  would  give  it  him  he  would  let 
her  loose.  She  said  he  could  have  all  she  pos 
sessed,  but  he  would  not  part  with  that  for  it  was 
her  Three-Sister-Ball.  But  when  she  heard  that 
she  would  have  to  sit  there  till  the  day  of  judgment 
if  he  did  not  get  it,  she  said  he  might  take  it  after 
all  if  only  she  would  set  her  free.  The  companion 
took  the  ball,  but  he  let  her  sit  where  she  was. 

So  they  went  for  many  days  over  hills  and 
through  forests,  till  they  came  to  a  mountain  that 
lay  across  the  road.  The  same  thing  happened  as 
before ;  the  companion  knocked,  the  rock  opened, 
and  inside  the  mountain  a  troll  woman  came  with  a 
stool  and  asked  them  to  sit  down,  for  they  might 
be  tired. 

But  the  companion  said,  "  Sit  down  yourself !" 
and  there  she  sat.  They  had  not  gone  through 
many  rooms  before  the  companion  saw  an  old  hat, 
which  hung  on  a  peg  behind  the  door.  He  wanted 
that  very  much,  but  the  troll  woman  did  not  want 
to  part  with  it,  for  it  was  her  Three- Sister-Hat, 
and  if  she  gave  it  a  way  she  would  be  most  unhappy. 
But  when  she  heard  that  she  would  have  to  sit 
there  till  the  end  of  the  world  if  he  did  not  get  it, 
she  said  he  might  take  it  if  he  only  let  her  loose. 
No  sooner  had  the  companion  got  the  hat  than  he 
told  her  to  remain  sitting  where  she  was,  just  like 
her  sisters. 


218        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

After  a  long  time  they  came  to  a  fiord.  Then 
the  companion  took  the  ball  of  gold  yarn,  and  threw 
it  so  hard  against  the  mountain  on  the  other  side  of 
the  fiord  that  it  came  back  to  him  again  ;  and  when 
he  had  thrown  it  across  a  few  times  it  became  a 
bridge.  They  went  across  the  fiord  on  this  bridge, 
and  when  they  got  to  the  other  side  the  man  asked 
the  lad  to  wind  up  the  yarn  again  as  fast  as  he 
could.  "  For  if  we  do  not  wind  it  up  quickly  the 
troll  women  will  be  upon  us  and  tear  us  to  pieces.7' 
The  lad  wound  up  the  yarn  as  quickly  as  he  could, 
and  just  as  he  got  to  the  end  the  troll  women  came 
rushing  along.  They  dashed  into  the  water  so  that 
the  foam  surged  round  them,  and  tried  to  snatch  the 
end ;  but  they  could  not  manage  to  get  hold  of  it, 
and  so  they  were  drowned  in  the  fiord. 

When  they  had  walked  on  for  some  days  the 
companion  said : 

"  We  shall  soon  come  to  the  castle  where  the 
princess  lives  about  whom  you  dreamed,  and  when 
we  get  there  you  must  go  in  and  tell  the  king  your 
dream,  and  whom  it  is  you  seek." 

When  they  got  there  the  lad  did  so,  and  he  was 
well  received  by  the  king.  He  got  a  room  for  him 
self  and  one  for  his  companion,  and  when  the  time 
for  dinner  came  he  was  invited  to  the  king's  own 
table.  When  he  saw  the  princess  he  recognized  her 
at  once,  and  saw  that  she  was  the  one  about  whom 
he  had  dreamed,  and  whom  he  should  have.  He 
told  her  his  errand,  and  she  answered  she  liked  him 
and  would  willingly  have  him,  but  first  he  must  go 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.        219 

through  three  trials.  So  when  they  had  dined  she 
gave  him  a  pair  of  gold  scissors,  and  said : 

"  The  first  trial  is  that  you  take  these  and  keep 
taera,  and  give  me  them  back  to-morrow  at  dinner 
time.  It  is  not  a  difficult  trial,  I  should  think,"  she 
said,  with  a  grin,  "  but  if  you  cannot  do  that  you 
Avill  lose  your  life.  That  is  the  law  here,  and  you 
will  be  broken  on  the  wheel  and  your  head  stuck 
on  a  stake,  just  like  the  suitors  whose  skulls  you  see 
outside  the  windows,"  for  there  hung  human  skulls 
round  about  the  palace  like  crows  on  the  fences  in 
the  autumn. 

"  There's  not  much  difficulty  in  that,"  thought 
the  lad.  But  the  princess  was  so  merry  and  bois 
terous  and  romped  so  much  with  him  that  he  for 
got  both  the  scissors  and  himself ;  and  while  they 
were  in  the  midst  of  the  romping  she  stole  the 
scissors  from  him  without  his  knowing  it.  When 
he  got  up  to  his  room  in  the  evening  and  told  his 
companion  what  had  happened,  and  what  the 
princess  had  said  about  the  scissors  which  she  gave 
him  to  keep,  the  companion  said  : 

"  Of  course,  you  have  the  scissors  she  gave  you  ?" 

He  felt  in  all  his  pockets,  but  there  were  no 
scissors,  and  the  lad  became  greatly  troubled  when 
he  found  they  were  gone. 

"  Well^  well,  you  must  be  patient  and  I'll  try  and 
get  them  back  for  you,"  said  the  companion.  He 
then  went  down  to  the  stable,  where  there  was  a 
big,  fat  goat  which  belonged  to  the  princess,  and 
which  could  fly  many  times  more  quickly  through 
the  air  than  it  could  run  over  the  ground. 


220  FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

Then  he  took  the  Three-Sister-Sword  and  gave 
the  goat  a  blow  between  the  horns  with  it  and  said : 

"  "When  does  the  princess  ride  to  her  sweetheart 
to-night  ?" 

The  goat  bleated  and  said  he  dared  not  tell,  but 
when  he  got  another  blow  he  said  the  princess  would 
be  there  at  eleven  o'clock.  The  companion  put  on 
the  Three-Sister-Hat  and  became  invisible  and  then 
waited  till  she  came.  The  princess  took  some  salve 

aich  she  had  in  a  big  horn  and  rubbed  the  goat 

th  it  and  said : 

"  Through  air,  through  air,  over  roofs  and  spires, 
over  land,  over  water,  over  hills,  over  dales,  to  my 
sweetheart,  who  awaits  me  in  the  mountain  to 
night  !" 

Just  as  the  goat  set  off,  the  companion  jumped  up 
behind,  and  away  they  went  like  the  wind  through 
the  air.  They  were  not  long  on  the  way.  All  of  a 
sudden  they  came  to  a  mountain  ;  there  she  knocked 
and  in  they  rushed  to  the  troll,  who  was  her  sweet 
heart. 

"  Another  suitor  has  arrived  and  wants  to  marry 
me,  my  dear.  He  is  young  and  handsome,  but  I 
will  have  none  other  than  you,"  she  said,  making  up 
to  the  troll.  "  So  I  put  him  on  trial  and  here  are 
the  scissors  he  was  to  look  after.  Now  you  must 
take  care  of  them,"  she  said.  Then  they  laughed 
heartily,  as  if  they  already  had  the  lad  on  wheel 
and  stake. 

"  Yes,  I  shall  mind  them  and  look  after  them,  and 
I  shall  sleep  in  the  arms  of  my  bride  when  the  raven 
is  picking  the  bones  of  the  lad,"  said  the  troll. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.        221 

Then  he  placed  the  scissors  in  an  iron  chest  with 
three  locks  to  it ;  but  just  as  he  dropped  the  scissors 
into  the  chest  the  companion  took  them.  No  one 
could  see  him,  for  he  had  on  the  Three-Sister-Hat, 
and  the  troll  thus  locked  the  chest  on  nothing.  The 
keys  he  hid  in  the  hole  of  one  of  his  back  teeth,  in 
which  he  had  the  toothache.  It  would  be  a  difficult 
job  to  find  them  there,  he  thought. 

Soon  after  midnight  the  princess  set  out  for  the 
palace  again.     The  companion  sat  behind  her  on  th 
goat  and  they  were  not  long  in  getting  home. 

Next  day  the  lad  was  asked  to  dinner  at  the  king 
table,  but  the  princess  gave  herself  such  mincing 
airs,  and  was  so  stuck  up  and  proud,  she  would 
scarcely  look  at  the  lad.  When  they  had  dined  she 
put  on  her  Sunday  expression  and  said  with  a 
simper : 

"  I  suppose  you  have  the  scissors  I  gave  you  to 
keep  yesterday  ?" 

"  Yes,  I  have !  Here  they  are !"  said  the  lad,  tak 
ing  them  out  and  banging  them  on  the  table  so  that 
it  bounded  from  the  floor. 

The  princess  could  not  have  been  more  angry  had 
he  struck  her  in  the  face  with  them ;  but  notwith 
standing  this  she  made  herself  pleasant  and  gentle 
and  said : 

"  Since  you  have  looked  after  the  scissors  so  well, 
it  will  not  be  difficult  for  you  to  keep  my  ball  of 
gold  yarn.  You  can  give  it  me  back  to-morrow  at 
dinner-time ;  but  if  you  haven't  got  it  you  will  lose 
your  life.  That  is  the  law  here." 


222        FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"  There's  not  much  difficulty  about  that,"  thought 
the  lad,  and  took  the  ball  and  put  it  in  his  pocket. 
But  she  began  again  to  romp  and  play  with  him,  so 
that  he  forgot  both  himself  and  the  ball ;  and  when 


they  were  in  the  midst  of  the  romping  she  stole  it 

from  him  and  let  him  go. 

"When  he  got  up  to  his  room  and  told  all  they  had 

said  and  done  the  companion  said  : 

"  Of  course  you  have  the  ball  she  gave  you  ?" 
"  Yes,  that  I  have,"  said  the  lad,  and  felt  in  his 

pocket ;  but  no,  he  had  no  ball,  and  he  became  so 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.        223 

troubled  again  that  he  did  not  know  what  to  do  with 
himself. 

"  Well,  be  patient !  I  must  try  and  get  it  for 
you,"  said  the  companion.  He  then  took  the  sword 
and  the  hat  and  set  off  to  a  smith  and  got  a  hun 
dred  weight  of  iron  welded  on  to  the  sword.  When 
he  came  to  the  stable  he  gave  the  goat  such  a  blow 
between  the  horns  that  it  staggered,  and  then  he 
asked  it  when  the  princess  would  ride  to  her  sweet 
heart  that  night. 

"  At  twelve  o'clock,"  bleated  the  goat. 

The  companion  put  on  the  Three-Sister-Hat  again 
and  waited  till  she  came  rushing  in  with  the  horn 
and  rubbed  the  goat  with  the  salve.  She  then  said 
the  same  as  the  first  time. 

"  Through  air,  through  air,  over  roofs  and  spires, 
over  land,  over  water,  over  hills,  over  dales,  to  my 
sweetheart,  who  awaits  me  in  the  mountain 
to-night." 

Sust  as  they  set  off  the  companion  jumped  up 
behind  on  the  goat  and  away  they  went  like  the 
wind  through  the  air. 

As  soon  as  they  came  to  the  troll  mountain  she 
knocked  three  times,  and  in  they  rushed  to  the  troll, 
who  was  her  sweetheart. 

"  Wherever  did  you  put  the  scissors  I  gave  you 
yesterday,  my  dear  ?"  said  the  princess  ;  "  my  suitor 
had  got  them  back  and  gave  them  to  me  again." 

"That  can't  be  possible,"  said  the  troll,  for  he 
had  locked  the  chest  with  three  locks  and  hidden 
the  keys  in  the  hole  in  his  back  tooth.  But  when 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

they  unlocked  the  chest  they  saw  the  troll  had  no 
scissors  there.  The  princess  then  told  him  she  had 
given  the  suitor  her  ball  of  gold  yarn. 

"  Here  it  is,"  she  said,  "  for  I  took  it  from  him 
again  without  his  knowing  it.  But  what  had  we 
better  think  of  since  he  can  do  such  tricks  ?" 

The  troll  did  not  quite  know,  but  when  they  had 
thought  it  over  a  bit  they  decided  to  make  a  big 
fire  and  burn  the  ball;  they  would  then  be  sure  he 
would  not  get  it.  Just  as  she  threw  the  ball  into 
the  fire  the  companion  stood  ready  and  caught  it. 
Neither  of  them  saw  it,  for  he  had  the  Three-Sister- 
Hat  on.  When  the  princess  had  been  with  the  troll 
awhile  and  the  day  began  to  dawn  she  set  off  to 
the  palace  again  ;  the  companion  sat  behind  her  on 
the  goat  and  they  got  home  both  quickly  and  well. 

"When  the  lad  was  asked  to  Dinner  the  companion 
gave  him  the  ball.  The  pririuess  was  still  more 
stuck  up  and  proud  than  on  the  day  before,  and 
when  they  had  finished  she  pouted  and  said  : 

"  I  suppose  I  may  have  back  my  ball  which  I 
gave  you  to  k^e^  vesterday  ?" 

uYes,"  sa^  .  .^d,  "that  you  may.  Here  it 
is  !"  and  he  threw  it  down  with  such  force  that  the 
table  gave  a  jump  and  the  king  leaped  into  the  air. 

The  princess  turned  as  white  as  a  ghost,  but  she 
soon  recovered  herself  and  said  that  was  well  done ; 
and  now  there  was  only  one  little  trial  left. 

"If  you  are  so  clever  that  you  can  bring  me 
to-morrow  at  dinner-time  what  I  am  now  thinking 
about  you  shall  have  me  and  keep  me,"  she  said. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        225 

The  lad  felt  as  if  he  had  been  condemned  to  death, 
for  he  thought  it  was  impossible  to  know  what  she 
was  thinking  about  and  still  more  impossible  to  get 
it.  When  he  came  to  his  room  he  was  so  excited  he 
could  not  keep  still.  The  companion  said  if  he  would 
be  quiet  he  would  find  a  way  out  of  the  difficulty  as 
he  had  done  before,  and  at  last  the  lad  was  pacified 
and  lay  down  to  sleep. 

In  the  meantime  the  companion  rushed  off  to  the 
smith  and  had  two  hundredweight  of  iron  welded 
to  the  sword ;  when  that  was  done  he  went  to  the 
stable  and  struck  the  goat  between  the  horns  with 
it  so  that  it  staggered  from  wall  to  wall. 

"  When  is  the  princess  going  to  her  sweetheart 
to-night?"  said  he. 

"  At  one  o'clock,"  bleated  the  goat. 

When  the  time  came  fl  e  companion  stood  in  the 
stable  with  the  Three-Sister-Hat  on,  and  when  the 
princess  had  rubbed  the  goat  with  the  salve  and 
uttered  the  same  words  as  before  that  they  should 
fly  to  her  sweetheart,  who  was  waiting  for  her  in  the 
mountain,  she  set  off  through  the  air  and  \wnd  with 
the  companion  again  behind  her.  But  this  time  he 
was  not  so  gentle  with  the  princess,  for  every  now 
and  then  he  thumped  her  so  that  he  almost  maimed 
ler.  When  they  came  to  the  mountain  she  knocked 
tt  the  gate,  which  opened  and  they  rushed  in  to  her 
Sweetheart. 

When  she  got  there  she  began  to  moan  and  groan 
JIIH!  said  she  did  not  know  if  the  weather  could 
have  been  so  bad,  but  both  she  and  the  goat  had 


226        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

been  beaten  by  some  one  and  she  was  sure  she  musl 
be  black  and  blue  all  over,  so  badly  had  she  farec 
on  the  way.  She  then  told  him  how  her  suitor  hac 
given  her  back  the  ball  also,  but  neither  she  nor  the 
troll  could  make  out  how  it  had  happened. 

"  But  do  you  know  what  I  have  thought  of  now  ?' 
she  said. 

No,  that  the  troll  could  not  tell. 

"  Well,  I  have  told  him  to  bring  me  by  dinner 
time  to-morrow  that  which  I  was  thinking  of — anc 
that  was  your  head !  Do  you  think  he  can  get  that 
my  dear  ?"  said  the  princess,  and  began  fondling  the 
troll. 

"  I  don't  think  he  can,"  said  the  troll ;  that  he 
would  take  his  oath  on ;  so  he  laughed  and  roarec 
worse  than  a  bogie;  and  both  the  troll  and  the 
princess  thought  the  lad  was  more  likely  to  adorr 
the  wheel  and  stake,  with  the  ravens  to  peck  his  eyes 
out,  than  to  get  hold  of  the  troll's  head. 

When  it  got  toward  morning  she  began  to  gel 
ready  to  set  out  for  the  palace ;  but  she  was  afraid 
she  said.  She  thought  there  was  some  one  after  hei 
and  she  dared  not  go  home  alone ;  the  troll  must  gc 
with  her.  Yes,  he  would,  so  he  brought  out  his 
goat,  for  he  had  one  just  like  the  princess  and  he 
rubbed  it  well  between  the  horns  with  the  salve, 
When  he  had  seated  himself  the  companion  got  up 
behind  him  and  off  they  went  through  the  air  to  the 
palace ;  but  on  the  way  the  companion  struck  the 
troll  and  the  goat  time  after  time,  and  gave  them 
blow  after  blow  with  his  sword,  till  at  last  they  sank 


FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.          227 

lower  and  lower  and  at  last  they  nearly  sank  into 
the  ocean  across  which  they  were  passing.  When 
the  troll  saw  that  things  were  going  so  badly  he 
hastened  on  to  the  palace  with  the  princess,  but 
stopped  to  see  that  she  got  in  well  and  safely.  But 
just  as  she  shut  the  door  behind  her  the  companion 
cut  off  the  troll's  head  and  ran  up  to  the  lad's  room 
with  it. 

"Here  is  that  which  the  princess  thought  of," 
said  he. 

The  lad  was,  as  you  can  imagine,  in  high  spirits, 
and  when  he  was  asked  down  to  dinner  next  day  and 
they  had  finished  eating^  the  princess  became  as 
blithe  as  a  lark. 

"  I  suppose  you  have  that  which  I  thought  of," 
said  she. 

"  Indeed,  I  have,"  said  the  lad,  and  pulled  out  the 
head  from  under  the  tail  of  his  coat  and  struck  the 
table  with  it,  so  that  the  table  and  everything  on  it 
fell  over. 

The  princess  became  as  pale  as  a  corpse,  but  she 
could  not  deny  that  that  was  what  she  had  thought 
of,  and  now  he  might  have  her  for  his  wife  as  she 
had  promised. 

The  wedding  was  then  kept  and  there  was  great 
rejoicing  over  the  whole  kingdom.  The  companion 
took  the  lad  aside  and  told  him  that  he  must  shut 
his  eyes  and  pretend  to  sleep  on  the  wedding  night, 
but  if  he  valued  his  life  and  would  obey  him,  he  must 
not  have  a  wink  of  sleep  before  he  had  rid  the  prin 
cess  of  the  troll-skin  with  which  she  was  covered. 


22S         FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH; 

He  would  have  to  flog  it  off  her  with  a  rod  made  of 
nine  new  birch  besoms  and  strip  her  of  it  in  three 
tubs  of  milk.  First  he  was  to  scrub  her  in  a  tub  of 
last  year's  whey,  then  he  was  to  rub  her  in  sour 
milk  and  then  rinse  her  in  a  tub  of  new  milk.  The 
besoms  lay  under  the  bed  and  the  tubs  he  had 
placed  in  the  corner,  so  everything  was  ready  for 
him. 

"  Yes,  the  lad  promised  that  he  would  obey  him, 
and  do  what  he  had  said.  When  they  went  to  bed 
in  the  evening  the  lad  pretended  to  sleep.  The 
princess  raised  herself  on  her  elbow  and  tickled  him 
under  the  nose  to  see  if  he  slept,  but  the  lad  seemed 
to  sleep  soundly.  She  then  pulled  him  by  his  hair 
and  beard,  but  he  slept  like  a  log,  as  she  thought. 
Then  she  dragged  out  from  under  her  pillow  a  large 
butcher's  knife,  and  was  going  to  cut  his  head  off, 
when  the  lad  sprang  up,  struck  the  knife  out  of  her 
hand,  and  seized  hold  of  her  by  the  hair.  He 
flogged  her  with  the  birch-rods  till  they  were  worn 
out  and  there  was  not  a  twig  left  of  them.  "When 
this  was  done,  he  threw  her  into  the  tub  of  whey, 
and  then  he  saw  what  sort  of  a  creature  she  was. 
She  was  as  black  as  a  raven  all  over  her  body,  but 
when  he  had  scrubbed  her  in  the  whey  and  rubbed 
her  with  the  sour  milk,  and  rinsed  her  in  the  new 
milk,  the  troll-skin  was  gone  and  she  was  as  gentle 
and  beautiful  as  she  had  never  been  before. 

The  next  day  the  companion  said  they  must  set 
off  home.  The  lad  was*  quite  willing  and  the 
princess  also,  for  her  dowry  had  been  ready  a  long 


44  Now  they  must  part  forever,"  said  the  companion.— Page  229. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.        229 

time.  During  the  night  the  companion  had 
brought  all  the  gold  and  silver  and  valuables,  which 
had  belonged  to  the  troll  in  the  mountain,  to  the 
palace;  and  when  they  were  ready  to  set  out  the 
next  day,  they  found  the  courtyard  so  full  of  things 
they  could  hardly  move.  That  dowry  was  worth 
more  than  the  king's  realm,  and  they  could  not  tell 
how  they  were  to  take  it  with  them.  But  the  com7 
panion  knew  a  way,  out  of  every  difficulty ;  there 
were  six  goats  belonging  to  the  troll,  which  could 
all  fly  through  the  air;  and  these  they  loaded  so 
heavily  with  gold  and  silver  that  they  had  to  walk 
along  the  ground,  as  they  were  unable  to  rise  in  the 
air  and  fly,  and  what  the  goats  could  not  carry  they 
had  to  leave  behind  at  the  palace. 

So  they  traveled  far  and  further  than  far,  till  the 
goats  at  last  became  so  tired  and  worn  out  that  they 
were  unable  to  go  any  further.  The  lad  and  the 
princess  did  not  know  what  to  do,  but  when 
the  companion  saw  they  could  not  get  on,  he  took 
the  whole  dowry  on  his  back  and  the  goats  on  the 
top  and  carried  them  all  till  there  was  only  a  mile 
left  to  the  lad's  home.  Then  the  companion  said  : 
"  Is"ow  I  must  leave  you,  I  cannot  remain  with  you 
any  longer/'  But  the  lad  would  not  part  with  him ; 
he  would  not  lose  him  for  little  or  much.  So  he 
went  with  them  another  half-mile,  but  further  he 
could  not  go,  and  when  the  lad  begged  and  prayed 
him  to  stop  with  him,  or  at  least  be  present  at  the 
home-coming  at  his  father's,  the  companion  said  no, 
that  he  could  not.  The  lad  then  asked  him  what  he 


230        FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

owed  him  for  all  his  help  and  assistance.  If  it  was 
to  be  anything,  it  must  be  the  half  of  everything 
he  got  during  the  next  five  years,  said  the  com 
panion. 

Yes,  that  he  should  have. 

When  he  was  gone  the  lad  left  all  his  riches 
behind  him  and  went  home  enjpty-handed. 

They  then  had  such  a  home-coming  festival  that 
it  was  heard  and  spoken  of  over  seven  kingdoms,  and 
when  it  was  at  an  end  the  winter  had  set  in ;  and 
then  they  began  to  cart  home  all  the  gold  and  silver, 
both  with  the  goats  and  the  twelve  horses  which 
his  father  had. 

In  five  years  the  companion  came  back  for  his 
share.  The  man  had  then  everything  divided  into 
two  equal  parts. 

"But  there  is  one  thing  which  you  have  not 
divided,"  said  the  companion. 

"  What  is  that  ?"  said  the  man.  "  I  thought  I  had 
divided  everything." 

"  You  have  a  child,"  said  the  companion ;  "  you 
must  divide  that  also  in  two." 

"  Yes,  that  was  true  enough.  So  he  took  the 
sword  ;  but  just  as  he  lifted  it  to  cleave  the  child  in 
two,  the  companion  seized  the  point  of  the  sword 
from  behind,  so  that  he  could  not  strike. 

"  Are  you  not  glad  that  I  stopped  you  from 
striking  that  blow  ?"  he  said. 

"  Yes,  I  have  never  been  so  glad,"  said  the  man. 

"  Well,  I  was  just  as  glad  when  you  lifted  me 
out  of  the  block  of  ice.  Keep  everything  you  have ! 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE   FAR  NORTH.        231 

I  do  not  want  anything,  for  I  am  a  floating  spirit." 
He  was  the  vintner  who  had  stood  in  the  block  of 
ice  outside  the  church  door,  and  whom  all  had  spat 
upon ;  and  he  had  been  his  companion  and  helped 
him  because  he  had  given  all  he  had  to  provide  him 
peace  and  get  him  buried  in  Christian  soil.  He  had 
been  allowed  to  follow  him  for  a  year,  and  that  was 
over  when  they  parted  the  last  time.  But  he  had 
been  allowed  to  see  him  again>  and  now  they  must 
part  forever,  for  he  heard  the  bells  of  heaven  ring 
ing  for  him. 


</ 


NANNY   WHO 

WOULDN'T  GO 
HOME    TO 

SUPPER 

THERE  was  once  upon  a 
time  a  woman  who  had  a 
son  and  a  goat.  The  son 
was  called  Espen  and  the 
goat  they  called  Nanny. 
But  they  were  not  good 
friends,  and  did  not  get 
on  together,  for  the  goat 
was  perverse  and  way- 
U  ward,  as  goats  will  be,  and 

>^V  she  would  never  go  home 
*..  at  the  right   time  for  her 
supper.      So   it   happened 
one  evening    that    Espen 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        233 

went  out  to  fetch  her  home,  and  when  he  had  been 
looking  for  her  awhile  he  saw  Nanny  high,  high  up 
on  a  crag : 

"  My  dear  Nanny,  you  must  not  stay  any  longer 
up  there;  you  must  come  home  now,  it  is  just 
supper  time.  I  am  so  hungry  and  want  my  supper." 

"  No,  I  shan't,"  said  Nanny,  "  not  before  I  have 
finished  the  grass  on  this  tussock,  and  that  tussock — 
and  this  and  that  tussock." 

"  Then  I'll  go  and  tell  mother,"  said  the  lad. 

"  That  you  may,  and  then  I  shall  be  left  to  eat  in 
peace,"  said  Nanny. 

So  Espen  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"  Go  to  the  fox  and  ask  him  to  bite  Nanny,"  said 
his  mother. 

The  lad  went  to  the  fox.  "  My  dear  fox,  bite 
Nanny,  for  Nanny  won't  come  home  in  time.  I  am 
so  hungry,  and  I  want  my  supper,"  said  Espen. 

"No,  I  don't  want  to  spoil  my  snout  on  pig's 
bristles  and  goat's  beard,"  said  the  fox. 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"  AY  ell,  go  to  the  wolf,"  said  his  mother. 

The  lad  went  to  the  wolf :  "  My  dear  wolf,  tear 
the  fox,  for  the  fox  won't  bite  Nanny,  and  Nanny 
won't  come  home  in  time.  I  am  so  hungry,  and  I 
want  my  supper." 

"  No,"  said  the  wolf,  "  I  won't  wear  out  my  paws 
and  teeth  on  a  skinny  fox." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 
'  Well,  go  to  the  bear  and  ask  him  to  slay  the 
wolf,"  said  the  mother. 


234       FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

The  lad  went  to  the  bear.  "  My  dear  bear,  slay 
the  wolf,  for  the  wolf  won't  tear  the  fox,  and  the 
fox  won't  bite  Nanny,  and  Nanny  won't  come 
home  in  time.  I  am  so  hungry  and  want  my 
supper." 

"  No,  that  I  won't,"  said  the  bear ;  "  I  don't  want 
to  wear  out  rny  claws  for  that." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"  Well,  go  to  the  Finn  and  ask  him  to  shoot  the 
bear." 

The  lad  went  to  the  Finn.  "  My  dear  Finn,  shoot 
the  bear,  for  the  bear  won't  slay  the  wolf,  the  wolf 
won't  tear  the  fox,  the  fox  won't  bite  Nanny,  and 
Nanny  won't  come  home  in  time.  •  I  am  so  hungry 
and  want  my  supper." 

"  No,  I  will  not,"  said  the  Finn ;  "  I  am  not  going 
to  shoot  away  my  bullets  for  that." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told,his  mother. 

"Well,  go  to  the  fir,"  said  his  mother,  "and  ask 
it  to  crush  the  Finn." 

"The  lad  went  to  the  fir  tree:  "My  dear  fir, 
crush  the  Finn,  for  the  Finn  won't  shoot  the  bear, 
the  bear  won't  slay  the  wolf,  the  wolf  won't  tear 
the  fox,  the  fox  won't  bite  Nanny,  and  Nanny 
won't  come  home  in  time.  I  am  so  hungry  and 
want  my  supper." 

"  No,  I  will  not,"  said  the  fir;  "  I  am  not  going  to 
break  my  boughs  for  that." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"  Well,  go  to  the  fire,"  said  his  mother,  "  and  ask 
it  to  burn  the  fir." 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

The  lad  went  to  the  fire  :  "  My  dear  fire,  burn  tr»e 
fir,  for  the  fir  won't  crush  the  Finn,  the  Finn  won't 
shoot  the  bear,  the  bear  won't  slay  the  wolf,  the 
wolf  won't  tear  the  fox,  the  fox  won't  bite  Nanny, 
and  Nanny  won't  come  home  in  time.  I  am  so 
hungry  and  want  my  supper." 

"  No,  I  will  not,"  said  the  fire;  "  I  am  not  going 
to  burn  myself  out  for  that." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"Well,  go  to  the  water,  and  ask  it  to  quench  the 
fire,"  she  said. 

The  lad  went  to  the  water.  "My  dear  water, 
quench  the  fire,  for  the  fire  won't  burn  the  fir,  the 
fir  won't  crush  t>~  Finn,  the  Finn  won't  shoot  the 
bear,  the  bear  won't  slay  the  wolf,  the  wolf  won't 
tear  the  fox,  the  fox  won't  bite  Nanny,  and  Nanny 
won't  come  home  in  time.  I  am  so  hungry  and 
want  my  supper." 

"  No,  I  will  not,"  said  the  water; "  I  am  not  going 
to  waste  myself  for  that." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother: 

"  Well,  go  to  the  ox,"  said  she,  "  and  ask  him  to 
drink  up  the  water." 

The  lad  went  to  the  ox:  "My  dear  ox,  drink  up 
the  water,  for  the  water  won't  quench  the  fire,  the 
fire  won't  burn  the  fir,  the  fir  won't  crush  the  Finn, 
the  Finn  won't  shoot  the  bear,  the  bear  won't  slay 
the  wolf,  the  wolf  won't  tear  the  fox,  the  fox  won't 
bite  Nanny,  and  Nanny  won't  come  home  in  time. 
I  am  so  hungry  and  want  my  supper." 

" No,  I  will  not,"  said  the  ox ;  "I  am  not  going 
to  burst  myself  for  that." 


236         FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH. 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"  Well,  go  to  the  yoke,"  said  she,  "  and  ask  it  to 
throttle  the  ox." 

The  lad  went  to  the  yoke.  "My  dear  yoke, 
throttle  the  ox,  for  the  ox  won't  drink  the  water, 
the  water  won't  quench  the  fire,  the  fire  won't  burn 
the  fir,  the  fir  won't  crush  the  Finn,  the  Finn  won't 
shoot  the  bear,  the  bear  won't  slay  the  wolf,  the 
wolf  won't  tear  the  fox,  the  fox  won't  bite  Nanny, 
and  Nanny  won't  come  home  in  time.  I  am  so 
hungry  and  want  my  supper." 

"  No,  I  will  not,"  said  the  yoke;  "  I  am  not  going 
to  break  myself  in  two  for  that." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"  Well  go  to  the  ax,"  said  she,  "  and  tell  it  to  split 
the  yoke." 

The  lad  went  to  the  ax.  "  My  dear  ax,  split  the 
yoke,  for  the  yoke  won't  throttle  the  ox,  the  ox 
won't  drink  the  water,  the  water  won't  quench  the 
fire,  the  fire  won't  burn  the  fir,  the  fir  won't  crush 
the  Finn,  the  Finn  won't  shoot  the  bear,  the  bear 
won't  slay  the  wolf,  the  wolf  won't  tear  the  fox, 
the  fox  won't  bite  Nanny,  and  Nanny  won't  come 
home  in  time.  I  am  so  hungry  and  want  my 
supper." 

" No,  I  will  not,"  said  the  ax ;  "I  am  not  going 
to  blunt  my  edge  for  that." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"  Well,  go  to  the  smith,"  said  she,  "  and  ask  him 
to  hammer  the  ax." 

The  lad  went  to  the  smith.     "My  dear  smith, 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        237 

hammer  the  ax,  for  the  ax  won't  split  the  yoke,  the 
yoke  won't  throttle  the  ox,  the  ox  won't  drink  the 
water,  the  water  won't  quench  the  fire,  the  fire 
won't  burn  the  fir,  the  fir  won't  crush  the  Finn,  the 
Finn  won't  shoot  the  bear,  the  bear  won't  slay  the 
wolf,  the  wolf  won't  tear  the  fox,  the  fox  won't 
bite  Nanny,  and  Nanny  won't  come  home  in  time. 
I  am  so  hungry  and  want  my  supper." 

"]STo,  I  will  not,"  said  the  smith;  "I'll  not  burn 
my  coals  and  wear  out  my  sledge-hammers  for 
that." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"  Well,  go  to  the  rope,"  said  she,  "  and  ask  it  to 
hang  the  smith." 

The  lad  went  to  the  rope.  "  My  dear  rope,  hang 
the  smith,  for  the  smith  won't  hammer  the  ax,  the 
ax  won't  split  the  yoke,  the  yoke  won't  throttle  the 
ox,  the  ox  won't  drink  the  water,  the  water  won't 
quench  the  fire,  the  fire  won't  burn  the  fir,  the  fir 
won't  crush  the  Finn,  the  Finn  won't  shoot  the 
bear,  the  bear  won't  slay  the  wolf,  the  wolf  won't 
tear  the  fox,  the  fox  won't  bite  Nanny,  and  Nanny 
won't  come  home  in  time.  I  am  so  hungry  and 
want  my  supper." 

"  No,  I  will  not,"  said  the  rope;  "I  am  not  going 
to  break  in  two  for  that." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"  Well,  go  to  the  mouse,  said  she,  "  and  ask  her  to 
gnaw  the  rope." 

The  lad  went  to  the  mouse.  "  My  dear  mouse, 
gnaw  the  rope,  for  the  rope  won't  hang  the  smith, 


238        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

the  smith  won't  hammer  the  ax,  the  ax  won't  split 
the  yoke,  the  yoke  won't  throttle  the  ox,  the  ox 
won't  drink  the  water,  the  water  won't  quench  the 
fire,  the  fire  won't  burn  the  fir,  the  fir  won't  crush 
the  Finn,  the  Finn  won't  shoot  the  bear,  the  bear 
won't  slay  the  wolf,  the  wolf  won't  tear  the  fox, 
the  fox  won't  bite  Nanny,  and  Nanny  won't  come 
home  in  time.  I  am  so  hungry  and  want  my 
supper." 

"  No,  I  will  not,"  said  the  mouse ;  "  I  am  not 
going  to  wear  out  my  teeth  for  that." 

So  the  lad  went  and  told  his  mother. 

"  Well,  go  to  the  cat,"  said  she,  "  and  ask  her  to 
catch  the  mouse." 

The  lad  went  to  the  cat.  "  My  dear  cat,  batch  the 
mouse,  for  the  mouse  won't  gnaw  the  rope,  the  rope- 
won't  hang  the  smith,  the  smith  won't  hammer  the 
ax,  the  ax  won't  split .  the  yoke,  the  yoke  won't 
throttle  the  ox,  the  ox  won't  drink  the  water,  the 
water  won't  quench  the  fire,  the  fire  won't  burn  the 
fir,  the  fir  won't  crush  the  Finn,  the  Finn  won't 
shoot  the  bear,  the  bear  won't  slay  the  wolf,  the 
wolf  won't  tear  the  fox,  the  fox  won't  bite  Nanny, 
and  Nanny  won't  come  home  in  time.  I  am  so 
hungry  and  want  my  supper." 

"  Yes,  but  givd  me  a  drop  of  milk  for  my  kittens 
and  then — "  said  the  cat. 

"  Yes,  that  sha  should  have.  So  the  cat  caught 
the  mouse,  and  the  mouse  gnawed  the  ropq,  and  the 
rope  hanged  the  smith,  and  the  smith  hammered  the 
ax,  and  the  ax  split  the  yoke,  and  the  yoke  throttled 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        239 

the  ox,  and  the  ox  drank  the  water,  and  the  water 
quenched  the  fire,  and  the  fire  burned  the  fir,  and 
the  fir  crushed  the  Finn5  and  the  Finn  shot  the  bear, 


and  the  bear  slew  the  wolf,  and  the  wolf  tore  the 
fox,  and  the  fox  bit  Nanny,  and  Nanny  took  to  her 
heels,  scampered  home,  and  ran  against  the  barn 
wall  and  broke  one  of  her  legs. 


240        FAIRY    TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH. 

"  M— a— h— a— h  !"  bleated  the  goat.  There  she 
lay,  and  if  she  isn't  dead  she  is  still  limping  about  on 
three  legs.  But  Espen  said  it  served  her  right,  be 
cause  she  would  not  come  home  in  time  for  supper 
that  day. 


THE   LAD   WITH   THE   BEER   KEG. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  lad  who  had  served 
a  long  time  with  a  man  north  of  Dovrefjeld.  This 
man  was  a  master  at  brewing  beer,  and  it  was  so 
wonderfully  good  that  the  like  of  it  was  not  to  be 
found  anywhere.  When  the  lad  was  going  to  leave 
and  the  man  was  to  pay  him  the  wages  he  had 
earned  he  would  not  have  anything  but  a  keg  of  the 
Christmas  beer.  That  he  got  and  off  he  went  with 
it,  and  he  carried  it  both  far  and  long.  But  the 
longer  he  carried  the  keg  the  heavier  it  got,  and  so 
he  began  to  look  round  to  see  if  any  one  were  com 
ing  with  whom  he  could  drink,  so  that  the  beer 
might  get  less  and  the  keg  lighter. 

After  a  long  time  he  met  an  old  man  with  a  long 
beard. 

"  Good-day !"  said  the  man. 

"  Good-day !"  said  the  lad. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?"  said  the  man. 

"  I'm  looking  for  some  one  to  drink  with  me,  so 
that  1  can  get  my  keg  lightened,"  said  the  lad. 

"  Can't  you  drink  with  me  just  as  well  as  with  any 
one  else,"  said  the  man.  "  I  have  traveled  far  and 
wide,  so  I  am  both  tired  and  thirsty." 

"  Well,  why  not  ?"  said  the  lad.  "  But  where  do 
you  come  from  and  who  are  you  ?"  said  he. 


242        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE   FAR  NORTH. 

"I  am  the  Lord  and  I  come  from  heaven,"  said 
the  man. 

"  I  will  not  drink  with  you,"  said  the  lad,  "  for 
you  make  such  a  difference  between  people  in  this 
world,  and  divide  everything  so  unjustly,  that  some 
become  rich  and  some  poor.  No,  I  will  not  drink 
with  you,"  said  he,  and  trudged  off  again  with  his 
keg. 

When  he  had  gone  a  bit  on  the  way  the  keg  again 
became  so  heavy  that  he  could  not  carry  it  any 
longer  unless  some  one  came  to  drink  with  him  and 

O  « 

lessen  the  beer  in  the  keg.  lie  then  met  an  ugly, 
bony  man,  who  came  rushing  along. 

"  Good-day !"  said  the  man. 

"  Good-day  !"  said  the  lad. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?"  said  the  man. 

"  Oh,  I'm  looking  for  some  one  to  drink  with  me, 
so  that  I  can  lighten  my  keg,"  said  the  boy. 

"  Can't  you  drink  just  as  well  with  me  as  with  any 
one  else  ?"  said  the  man.  "  I  have  traveled  far  and 
wide  and  a  drop  of  beer  will  do  an  old  body  good," 
said  he. 

"  Yes,  why  not  ?"  said  the  lad,  "  but  who  are  you 
and  where  do  you  come  from  ?"  he  asked. 

"  I  ?  Oh,  I  am  well  known.  I  am  the  Devil  and 
I  come  from  hell,"  said  the  man. 

"  No,"  said  the  lad,  "  you  only  torture  and  plague 
people,  and  whenever  there  is  a  misfortune  they 
always  say  it  is  your  fault.  No,  I  will  not  drink 
with  you,"  said  the  lad.  So  he  went  far  and  further 
than  far  with  his  beer  keg,  till  he  felt  it  growing  so 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.        243 

heavy  he  could  not  carry  it  any  further.  He  began 
to  look  round  again  if  some  one  were  not  coming 
with  whom  he  could  drink  and  so  lighten  his  keg. 

After  a  long  time  there  came  a  man  who  was  so 
thin  and  shriveled  it  was  a  wonder  his  bones  could 
hang  together. 

"  Good-day !"  said  the  man. 

"  Good-day  !"  said  the  lad. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?"  said  the  man. 

"  I'm  looking  to  see  if  I  can  find  some  one  to  drink 
with  me,"  said  the  lad,  "  so  as  to  lighten  my  keg  a 
little  ;  it  is  getting  so  heavy  to  carry,"  said  he. 


244        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH. 

"  Can't  you  just  as  well  drink  with  me  as  with 
any  one  else  ?"  said  the  man. 

"  Yes ;  why  not  ?"  said  the  lad ;  "  but  who  are 
you  ?"  . 

"  They  call  me  Death,"  said  the  man. 

"  I  will  drink  with  you,"  said  the  lad,  and  he  put 
down  the  keg  and  began  to  pour  out  the  beer  into 
a  bowl.  "You  are  a  trustworthy  man,  for  you 
treat  all  alike,  both  rich  and  poor." 

So  he  drank  his  health,  and  Death  thought  it  was 
a  splendid  drink ;  and  as  the  lad  did  not  begrudge 
him,  they  drank  in  turn,  so  the  beer  got  less  and 
the  keg  lighter.  At  last  Death  said  : 

"  I  have  never  known  drink  which  tasted  better 
and  did  me  so  much  good  as  the  beer  you  have  given 
me.  I  feel  as  if  I  had  been  born  anew.  I  don't 
know  what  good  I  can  do  you  in  return."  When 
he  had  bethought  himself  awhile  he  said  that  the 
keg  should  never  get  empty,  no  matter  how  much 
they  drank  of  it ;  and  the  beer  that  was  in  it  should 
become  a  healing  draught,  so  that  the  lad  should 
cure  the  sick  better  than  any  doctor.  Death  also 
said  that  when  the  lad  came  into  a  sick-room  he 
would  always  be  there  and  show  himself  to  him, 
and  it  should  be  a  sure  sign  to  him  that  when  Death 
sat  at  the  foot  of  the  bed  he  would  be  able  to  cure 
the  sick  with  a  draught  from  the  keg,  but  if  he  sat 
at  the  head  there  was  no  help  or  cure  for  the  sick 
person. 

The  lad  soon  became  renowned,  and  was  sent  for 
far  and  wide,  and  he  helped  many  to  health  again 
for  whom  there  had  been  no  hope. 


FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.        245 

When  he  came  into  a  room  and  saw  Death  beside 
the  sick  he  foretold  either  life  or  death,  and  he  was 
always  right  in  his  prediction.  He  became  a  rich 
and  mighty  man,  and  one  day  he  was  fetched  to  a 
princess  far  away  in  another  land.  She  was  so 
dangerously  ill  that  the  doctors  thought  they  could 
do  no  more  for  her,  so  they  promised  him  anything 
he  might  wish  for  if  he  only  saved  her  life. 

When  he  came  into  the  princess'  room  he  found 
Death  sitting  at  the  head  of  the  bed,  but  he  sat 
dozing  and  nodding,  and  while  he  sat  thus  the 
princess  felt  better. 

"  This  is  a  case  of  life  or  death,"  said  the  doctor, 
"  and  there  is  no  hope,  if  I  see  rightly,"  he  said ; 
but  they  told  him  he  must  save  her  if  it  should  cost 
even  the  whole  kingdom.  He  then  looked  at 
Death,  and  while  he  was  sitting  dozing  he  made  a 
sign  to  the  servants  that  they  should  make  haste 
and  turn  the  bed.  So  Death  was  left  sitting  at  the 
foot  of  it,  and  as  soon  as  that  was  done  he  gave  the 
princess  the  healing  draught,  and  she  was  saved. 

i;]S"ow  you've  cheated  me,"  said  Death,  "and  we 
are  quits." 

"  I  was  obliged  to  do  it  if  I  were  to  win  the  king 
dom,"  said  the  doctor. 

"  That  will  not  help  you  much,"  said  Death ; 
"your  time  is  up,  and  now  you  belong  to 
me." 

"  Let  that  be  as  it  may,"  said  the  doctor  ;  "  but  I 
suppose  you'll  first  give  me  leave  to  read  the  Lord's 
Prayer  to  the  end,"  said  he. 


246      FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 


Yes,  that  he  would;  but  the  doctor  took  great 
care  not  to  read  the  Lord's  Prayer.  He  read  every 
thing  else,  but  the  Lord's  Prayer  never  crossed  his 
lips.  At  last  he  thought  he  had  cheated  Death  for 
good ;  but  when  Death  thought  this  had  gone  on 
too  long,  he  went  to  the  doctor's  room  one  night 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.        HI 

and  hung  up  a  large  tablet  opposite  his  bed  with 
the  Lord's  Prayer  on  it. 

When  the  doctor  awoke  he  began  reading  it,  and 
did  not  bethink  himself  of  what  he  was  doing  till 
he  came  to  "  Amen."  But  then  it  was  too  late. 


LITTLE  FEED  AND   HIS  FIDDLE. 

I 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  cottager  who  had 
an  only  son,  and  this  lad  was  rather  weak  and 
always  ailing,  so  he  was  not  able  to1  go  out  to  work. 
His  name  was  Fred,  but  being  rather  small  for  his 
age  he  was  generally  called  Little  Fred.  At  home 
there  wasn't  much  to  bite  or  to  munch  either,  so 
his  father  went  about  the  parish  to  get  a  place  for 
him  as  a  cowboy  or  an  errand  boy. 

But  nobody  wanted  a  lad  until  he  came  to  the 
bailiff  of  the  parish  ;  he  would  take  him  as  he  had 
just  turned  away  his  errand  boy,  and  there  was  no 
one  who  cared  to  go  to  him,  because  every  one  said 
he  was  a  stingy  old  miser.  "  Something  is  better 
than  nothing,"  thought  the  father ;  in  any  case  he 
would  get  his  food,  for  that  was  all  he  was  going  to 
have  from  the  bailiff.  There  wasn't  a  word  said 
about  clothes  or  wages. 

But  when  the  lad  had  been  there  three  years  he 
wanted  to  leave,  and  so  the  bailiff  paid  him  his 
wages  for  the  time  he  had  been  with  him.  He  was 
to  have  a  penny  a  year.  "  It  couldn't  very  well  be 
less,"  said  the  bailiff,  so  he  paid  the  lad  three  pen 
nies  altogether.  Little  Fred,  however,  thought  it 
was  a  lot  of  money,  because  he  had  never  owned  so 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.        249 

much  before ;  but  he  asked  if  he  wasn't  going  to 
have  some  more,  for  all  that. 

"  You  have  got  more  than  you  ought  to  have/' 
said  the  bailiff. 

"  Shan't  I  have  anything  for  clothes,  then  ?"  said 
Little  Fred.  "  Those  I  had  on  when  I  came  here  are 
now  all  in  rags,  and  I  haven't  had  any  new  ones 
from  you.  I  have  only  rags  and  tatters  flapping 
and  dangling  about  me,"  said  he. 

"  When  you  have  got  what  we  agreed  upon,  and 
the  three  pennies  besides,  I  have  nothing  more  to 
do  with  you,"  said  the  bailiff.  But  he  might  go 
out  into  the  kitchen  and  get  a  little  food  in  his 
knapsack,  and  then  he  started  off  along  the  road  to 
town  to  buy  clothes.  He  was  both  merry  and  glad, 
because  he  had  never  seen  a  penny  before,  and  he 
couldn't  help  feeling  in  his  pocket  now  and  then  to 
see  if  they  were  all  three  there. 

So  when  he  had  gone  far,  and  further  than  far, 
he  came  to  a  narrow  valley  with  high  mountains  on 
all  sides  ;  so  he  didn't  know  which  way  to  get  on, 
and  he  began  to  wonder  what  there  could  be  on  the 
other  side  of  the  mountains  and  how  he  should  get 
over  them.  But  get  over  them  he  must,  and  so  he 
started.  He  wasn't  very  strong,  and  had  to  rest 
now  and  then,  and  he  would  then  count  over  his 
money  to  see  how  much  he  had. 

When  he  got  to  the  top  of  the  mountain  he  found 
there  was  nothing  but  a  great  big  moor.  There  he 
sat  down,  and  was  just  going  to  see  if  had  his  pen 
nies  all  right  when  a  beggar  came  up  to  him  before 


250      FAIRY  *TALES  FROM  ±HE  FAR  NORTH. 

he  knew  a  thing  about  it ;  but  the  beggar  was  so 
tall  and  big  that  the  lad  began  to  scream  when  he 
really  saw  what  a  big  and  long  fellow  he 
was. 

"  Don't  you  be  afraid  of  me,"  said  the  beggar  ; 
"  I  shan't  hurt  you.  I  only  beg  for  a  penny  in 
heaven's  name." 

"  God  help  me,"  said  the  lad  ;  "  I  have  only  three 
pennies,  and  I  was  just  going  to  town  to  buy  some 
clothes  with  them." 

"  It  is  worse  with  me  than  with  you,"  said  the 
beggar ;  "  I  haven't  got  a  penny,  and  I  am  still 
more  ragged  than  you." 

"  Well,  I  suppose  you  must  have  it,  then,"  said 
the  lad. 

When  he  had  walked  on  a  bit  he  became  tired 
and  sat  down  to  take  another  rest.  When  he 
looked  up  there  was  a  beggar  again,  but  this  one 
was  much  bigger  and  uglier  than  the  first,  and 
when  the  lad  saw  how  big  and  ugly  he  was  he  began 
to  scream. 

"Don't  be  afraid  of  me;  I  shan't  hurt  you.  I 
only  beg  for  a  penny  in  heaven's  name,"  said  the 
beggar. 

"Well,  God  help  me !"  said  the  lad,  " as  true  as  I 
am  here,  I  have  only  got  two  pennies,  and  I  was 
just  going  to  town  to  buy  some  clothes  with  them. 
If  only  I  had  met  you  sooner,  I " 

"  It  is  worse  with  me  than  with  you,"  said  the 
beggar.  "  I  haven't  got  a  penny,  and  I  have  a  much 
bigger  body  and  less  clothes. 


•  Don't  you  be  afraid  of  me,"  said  the  beggar.— Page  250. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        251 

"  Well,  I  suppose  you  must  have  it  then !"  said  the 
lad. 

When  he  got  a  bit  further  he  became  tired  and 
sat  down  to  rest ;  but  he  had  no  sooner  sat  down 
than  another  beggar  came  to  him ;  and  he  was  so 
tall  and  big  and  ugly  that  when  the  lad  was  going 
to  look  up  at  him  he  had  to  look  up  to  the  sky,  and 
then  he  could  really  see  what  a  very  big,  ugly, 
ragged  fellow  he  was.  And  the  lad  began  scream 
ing  and  shouting. 

"  Don't  you  be  afraid  of  me,  my  lad,"  said  the 
beggar ;  "  I  shan't  hurt  you,  for  I  am  only  a  poor 
beggar,  who  begs  a  penny  in  heaven's  name." 

"  Well,  God  help  me !"  said  the  lad,  "  as  true  as  I 
am  here,  I  have  only  one  penny  left,  and  I  was  just 
going  to  town  to  buy  some  clothes  with  it.  If  I  had 
only  met  you  sooner,  I— 

"  Well,  I  haven't  got  a  penny  and  I  have  a  bigger 
body  and  less  clothes,  so  it  is  worse  with  me  than 
with  you,"  said  the  beggar. 

"  Well,  I  suppose  you  must  have  the  penny,  then," 
said  Little  Fred.  There  was  no  help  for  it ;  now 
they  had  all  had  one  each  and  he  had  none. 

"  Now  since  you  have  such  a  good  heart  and  have 
given  away  all  you  had,"  said  the  beggar,  "  I  will 
give  you  a  wish  for  each  penny."  It  was  the  same 
beggar  who  had  got  all  the  three  pennies ;  he  had 
only  changed  each  time,  so  that  the  lad  should  not 
know  him  again. 

."I  have  always  been  wishing  to  hear  the  fiddle 
playing,  and  see  people  so  merry  and  happy  that 


252        FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

they  had  to  dance,"  said  the  lad  ;  "  so  if  I  may  wish 
what  I  like  I  wish  I  had  such  a  fiddle  as  would 
make  everything  that  is  alive  dance  to  its  tune.' 

"  That  you  ma}r  have,"  said  the  beggar ;  "  but  it 
is  a  poor  wish.  You  must  wish  something  better 
for  the  other  pennies." 

"  I  have  always  been  fond  of  hunting  and  shoot 
ing,"  said  Little  Fred ;  "  so  if  I  may  wish  what  I 
like,  I  wish  I  had  a  gun  that  would  hit  everything  I 
aim  at,  if  it  were  ever  so  far  off." 

"  That  you  may  have,"  said  the  beggar ;  "  but  it 
is  a  poor  wish.  You  must  wish  something  better 
for  the  last  penny." 

"  I  have  always  liked  to  be  in  company  with  kind 
and  good  people,"  said  Little  Fred ;  "  so  if  I  may 
wish  what  I  like,  I  wish  that  no  one  can  refuse  me 
the  first  thing  I  ask." 

"That  wasn't  such  a  bad  wish,"  said  the  beggar, 
and  strolled  off  among  the  hills  till  the  lad  couldn't 
see  him  any  more.  So  the  lad  lay  down  to  sleep, 
and  the  next  day  he  came  down  from  the  mountains 
with  his  fiddle  and  his  gun. 

First  he  went  to  the  storekeeper  and  asked  for 
clothes,  and  at  one  farm  he  asked  for  a  horse,  and  at 
another  for  a  sledge,  and  at  one  place  he  asked  for  a 
fur  coat,  and  no  one  could  say  "  No  "  to  him ;  even 
the  most  stingy  people  had  to  give  him  what  he 
asked  for.  At  last  he  traveled  through  the  parish 
like  a  fine  gentleman  with  his  horse  and  sledge. 
When  he  had  gone  some  distance  he  met  the  bailiff 
he  had  served. 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.      253 

"  Good-day,  master !"  said  Little  Fred,  as  he 
stopped  and  took  off  his  cap. 

"  Good-day  !"  said  the  bailiff ;  "  have  I  been  your 
master  ?" 

"  Yes,  don't  you  recollect  that  I  served  three  years 
with  you  for  three  pennies  ?"  said  Little  Fred. 

"  Dear  me !"  said  the  bailiff,  "  how  you  have  got 
on !  How  is  it  you  have  become  such  a  grand 
fellow?" 

"  Ah,  you  think  so,  do  you  ?"  said  the  youngster. 

"  And  you  seem  to  be  so  merry  that  you  must 
have  a  fiddle  with  you  as  well,"  said  the  bailiff. 

"  Yes,  I  always  liked  to  see  people  dance,"  said 
the  lad;  "  but  the  finest  thing  I  have  is  this  gun  of 
mine.  It  hits  everything  I  aim  at,  if  it  is  ever  so 
far  off.  Do  you  see  that  magpie  in  the  fir  tree 
yonder?  What  will  you  wager  I  don't  hit  it  from 
where  we  are  now  standing  ?" 

The  bailiff  would  willingly  have  staked  both  his 
horse  anjl  farm  and  a  hundred  dollars  beside,  that 
he  couldn't  hit  it.  But  as  it  was  he  would  stake 
all  the  money  he  had  in  his  pocket,  and  wouldn't 
mind  fetching  the  magpie  when  it  fell  down,  be 
cause  he  never  believed  it  was  possible  a  gun  could 
reach  so  far.  Off  went  the  gun  and  down  fell  the 
magpie  right  in  the  middle  of  a  lot  of  brambles. 
The  bailiff  ran  right  in  among  the  brambles  after 
the  magpie,  picked  it  up  and  showed  it  to  the  lad. 
But  just  at  that  moment  Little  Fred  took  his  fiddle 
out  and  began  playing,  and  the  bailiff  began  to 
dance,  and  danced  away  while  the  thorns  were  tear- 


254       FAIRY   TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH. 

ing  his  clothes ;  but  the  lad  went  on  playing,  and 
the  bailiff  danced  and  cried  and  begged  for  himself 
till  the  rags  flew  about  him  and  till  he  had  scarcely 
a  thread  to  his  back. 

"  Well,  now,  I  think  you  are  almost  as  ragged  as 
I  was  when  I  left  your  service,"  said  the  lad,  "  so 
now  you  may  go."  But  first  the  bailiff  had  to  pay 
the  wager  He  had  lost,  that  the  boy  couldn't  hit  the 
magpie. 

When  the  lad  came  to  town  he  went  into  an  inn, 
and  began  playing,  and  all  who  came  there  had  to 
dance.  And  he  lived  on  merrily  and  well,  for  he 
had  no  cares,  since  no  one  could  say  "  No  "  to  him 
when  he  asked  for  anything. 

But  just  as  they  were  in  the  middle  of  the  fun 
the  watchman  came  to  take  the  lad  up  before  the 
magistrate,  for  the  bailiff  had  complained  about 
him  and  charged  him  with  having  waylaid  and 
robbed  him  and  nearly  taken  his  life ;  and  now  the 
lad  was  going  to  be  hanged — there  was  no  he]p  for 
it. 

But  Little  Fred  had  the  means  of  getting  out  of 
all  trouble,  and  that  was  the  fiddle.  He  began  to 
play  on  it,  and  then  you  should  have  seen  how  the 
watchmen  danced  away,  till  they  fell  down  and 
gasped  for  breath. 

So  they  sent  soldiers  and  the  guard,  but  it  fared 
no  better  with  them  than  the  watchmen.  When 
Little  Fred  took  out  his  fiddle,  they  had  to  dance 
as  long  as  he  was  able  to  play  on  it,  but  they  were 
done  for  long  before  he  was  tired.  At  last  they 


Every  one  that  was  there  began  dancing;  they  danced  and  screamed  the 
one  louder  than  the  other.— Page  255. 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.        255 

came  unawares  upon  him  and  took  him  while  he 
was  asleep  at  night,  and  when  he  was  brought  up 
he  was  sentenced  to  be  hanged  at  once,  and  away 
they  all  went  to  the  gallows.  There  was  such  a 
crowd  of  people  to  see  this  wonderful  lad,  and  the 
bailiff  was  there  too ;  he  was  so  pleased,  because  he 
was  to  get  amends  both  for  his  money  and  his  skin, 
and  see  the  lad  hanged  into  the  bargain ;  but  it , 
took  a  long  time  before  they  came  to  the  gallows, 
because  Little  Fred  was  always  weak  on  his  legs, 
and  now  he  made  himself  still  worse.  He  had 
brought  with  him  his  fiddle  and  his  gun,  as  they 
could  not  get  him  to  part  with  them,  and  when  he 
came  to  the  gallows  and  was  going  to  mount  the 
ladder,  he  halted  and  rested  himself  on  each  step. 
When  he  got  to  the  top  of  the  ladder  he  sat  down 
and  asked  if  they  would  not  grant  him  one  thing ; 
he  had  such  a  wish  to  play  a  tune — just  a  little  bit 
of  a  tune — on  his  fiddle  before  he  was  hanged. 
"  Well,"  they  said,  "  it  were  both  sin  and  shame  to 
deny  him  that ;"  for  you  see  they  could  not  say 
"  No"  to  what  he  asked  for.  But  the  bailiff  asked 
in  heaven's  name  that  they  would  not  let  him  touch 
a  string,  or  else  there  would  not  be  much  left  of  any 
of  them.  If  the  lad  was  to  play  the  bailiff  wanted 
to  be  tied  up  to  a  birch  tree  that  stood  there.  But 
Little  Fred  was  not  long  about  getting  out  his 
fiddle  and  playing  on  it,  and  then  all  that  were  there 
began  dancing,  both  those  that  went  on  two  legs 
and  those  that  went  on  four,  both  the  deacon  and 
the  parson,  the  judge  and  the  sheriff,  men  and 


256        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

women,  dogs  and  swine ;  they  danced  and  screamed 
the  one  louder  than  the  other.  Some  danced  till 
they  dropped  down  dead,  some  danced  till  they  fell 
down  in  fits.  All  had  a  terrible  time  of  it,  but 
worst  of  all  the  poor  bailiff  who  was  tied  up  to  the 
birch  tree,  and  was  dancing  away  till  he  scraped 
great  bits  of  skin  off  his  back.  There  was  no  one 
who  thought  of  doing  anything  to  Little  Fred  after 
that,  and  they  let  him  go  with  his  gun  and  his  fiddle 
where  he  liked.  He  lived  happy  all  his  days,  for 
there  was  no  one  who  could  say  "  No"  to  the  first 
thing  he  asked  for. 


THE   STOEEHOUSE   KEY   IN   THE 
DISTAFF. 

THERE  was  once  a  rich  farmer's  son  who  went  out 
to  woo.  He  had  heard  of  a  lass  who  was  fair  and 
gentle,  and  who  was  both  clever  in  the  house  and 
good  at  cooking. 

Thither  he  went,  for  it  -was  just  such  a  wife  he 
ted.  The  people  on  the  farm  knew,  of  course, 


258       FAIRY  TALES   FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

on  what  errand  he  came,  so  they  asked  him  to  take 
a  seat  near  to  them,  and  they  talked  and  chatted 
with  him,  as  the  custom  is,  and  beside  offered  him 


a  drink  and  asked  him  to  stop  to  dinner.  They 
went  in  and  out  of  the  room,  so  the  lad  had  time  to 
look  about  him,  and  over  in  a  corner  he  saw  a  spin 
ning  wheel  with  the  distaff  full  of  flax. 

"  Whose  spinning  wheel  is  that  ?"  asked  the  lad. 

"  Oh,  that's  our  daughter's,"  said  the  woman  of 
the  house. 

"  There's  a  deal  of  flax  on  it,"  said  the  lad;  "I 
suppose  she  takes  more  than  a  day  to  spin  that," 
said  he. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.        259 

"No,  not  at  all,"  said  the  woman;  "she  does  it 
easily  in  one  day  and  perhaps  less  than  that." 

That  was  more  than  he  had  ever  heard  of  any  one 
being  able  to  spin  in  such  a  short  time. 

When  they  were  going  to  carry  in  the  dinner  they 
all  went  out  of  the  room  and  he  was  left  alone.  He 
then  saw  an  old  key  lying  in  the  window,  and  this 
he  took  and  stowed  well  away  among  the  flax  on  the 
distaff.  So  they  ate  and  drank  and  got  on  well 
together,  and  when  the  lad  thought  he  had  been 
there  long  enough  he  said  good-by  and  went  his  way. 
They  asked  him  to  come  soon  again,  which  he 
promised,  but  he  did  not  speak  of  the  matter  he  had 
at  heart,  although  he  liked  the  lass  very  well. 

Some  time  after  he  came  again  to  the  farm,  and 
they  received  him  still  better  than  the  first  time. 
But  just  as  they  were  chatting  at  their  best  the 
farmer's  wife  said : 

"  Last  time  you  were  here  something  very  remark 
able  happened;  our  storehouse  key  disappeared 
all  at  once  and  we  have  never  been  able  to  find  it 
since." 

The  lad  went  over  to  the  spinning  wheel,  which 
stood  in  the  corner  with  just  as  much  flax  on  it  as 
when  last  he  was  there.  He  put  his  hand  in  among 
the  flax  and  said  : 

"  Here  is  the  key  !  Much  cannot  be  made  by  the 
spinning  Avhen  the  spinning  day  lasts  from  Michael 
mas  to  Easter." 

So  he  said  good-by,  and  did  not  speak  of  the  mat 
ter  he  had  at  heart  that  time  either. 


THE  LAD  WHO  WENT  WOOING 
THE  DAUGHTER  OF  OLD 
MOTHER  CORNER. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  woman 
who  had  a  son,  and   he  was  so  lazy  and 
happy-go-lucky  he  would  never  do  any 
thing    that  was   useful.     His  mind   was 
only  bent   on  singing  and  dancing,  and 
this  he  did  all  day  long  and  even  far  into 
the  night.   The  longer  this  went  on  the 
harder  it  became  for  his  mother;    the 
lad    grew   bigger    and    bigger,   and    he 
wanted  no  end  of  food,  and  of  clothes 
he  wanted  more  and  more  as  he   grew 
u^;  and  they  did  not 
last  long,  I  can  assure 
you,  for  he  danced  and 
r  an    about 
both   in    the 
„..,    woods   and 
the  fields. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.      261 

At  last  the  mother  thought  things  were  getting 
too  bad,  so  she  told  the  lad  one  day  he  must  begin 
and  go  to  work  and  make  himself  useful,  else  there 
was  nothing  but  starvation  left  for  them  both.  But 
the  lad  had  no  mind  for  that ;  he  said  he  would 
rather  go  and  woo  the  daughter  of  old  Mother 
Corner,  for  if  he  got  her  he  could  live  happy  and 
contented  ail  his  days,  and  sing  and  dance  and  never 
trouble  himself  about  work.  When  the  mother 
heard  this  she  thought  that  was  not  a  bad  thing 
after  all ;  he  might  try  in  any  case,  and  so  she 
dressed  up  the  lad  as  best  she  could,  that  he  might 
look  a  little  tidy  when  he  came  to  old  Mother 
Corner,  and  then  he  set  out  on  his  way. 

When  he  came  out  of  the  house  the  sun  was  shin 
ing  warm  and  bright ;  but  it  had  rained  during  the 
night,  so  the  ground  was  soft  and  the  moors  were 
filled  with  puddles.  The  lad  took  the  shortest 
way  across  the  moors  to  old  Mother  Corner,  and  ran. 
and  sang  as  he  always  did,  but  just  as  he  was  run 
ning  and  jumping  along  he  came  to  a  bridge  of 
logs  across  a  marshy  bit  of  the  path,  and  from  this 
bridge  he  was  going  to  make  a  jump  across  a  puddle 
on  to  a  tussock,  so  as  not  to  dirty  his  boots,  but  just 
as  he  put  his  foot  on  the  tussock — plump!  down  he 
went  and  did  not  stop  till  he  found  himself  in  a 
nasty,  dark  hole.  At  first  he  could  not  see  anything, 
but  when  he  had  been  there  awhile  he  caught  a 
glimpse  of  a  rat.  widdling-waddling  about  with  a 
bunch  of  keys  on  her  tail. 

"  Are  you  there,  my  dear  ?"  said  the  rat.     "  1  am 


262       FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

so  glad  you  have  come  to  see  me.  I  have  been 
waiting  a  long  time  for  you.  I  expect  you  have 
come  to  woo  me,  and  that  you  are  in  a  great  hurry ; 
but  you  must  be  patient  awhile  yet,  for  I  must  have 
a  big  dowry,  and  I  am  not  ready  for  the  wedding, 
but  I'll  do  my  best  so  that  it  can  come  off  soon." 

When  she  had  said  this  she  brought  out  some 
egg-shells  with  all  kinds  of  dainties  such  as  rats  eat 
and  put  before  him  and  said :  "  You  must  make 
yourself  at  home  and  have  something  to  eat ;  you 
must  be  both  tired  and  hungry." 

But  the  lad  did  not  much  fancy  such  food.  "  I 
wish  I  were  well  out  of  this  and  above  ground 
again,"  he  thought ;  but  he  said  nothing. 

"  I  suppose  you  want  to  be  off  home,"  said  the  rat. 
"  I  know  you  are  longing  for  the  wedding,  so  I'll 
make  all  the  haste  I  can.  You  must  take  with  you 
this  linen  thread,  and  when  you  get  up  above  ground 
you  must  not  look  back,  but  go  straight  home ;  and 
on  the  road  you  must  not  say  anything  but  '  Short 
in  front  and  long  behind,' "  and  so  she  put  into  his 
hand  a  linen  thread. 

"  Heaven  be  praised  !"  said  the  lad  when  he  got 
above  ground ;  "  I  shall  never  go  down  there  again." 
But  he  had  the  thread  in  his  hand  and  he  ran  and 
sang  as  usual.  But  although  he  did  not  think  any 
more  about  the  rathole,  the  tune  had  got  into  his 
head  and  he  sang : 

"  Short  in  front  and  long  behind! 
Short  in  front  and  long  behind!" 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH.        263 

"When  he  got  home  to  the  door  he  turned  round 
and  there  lay  many,  many  hundreds  of  yards  of  the 
whitest  linen,  so  fine  that  the  cleverest  weavers 
could  not  weave  it  finer. 

"Mother,  mother!  come  out,  come  out!"  he 
shouted  and  cried. 

The  woman  came  running  out  and  asked  what  was 
the  matter.  When  she  saw  the  linen,  which  reached 
as  far  as  she  could  see  and  a  bit  further,  she  would 
not  believe  her  own  eyes  until  the  lad  had  told  her 
how  it  had  happened ;  and  when  she  had  heard  it 
all  and  felt  the  linen  with  her  fingers  she  became  so 
glad  that  she  too  began  to  dance  and  sing. 

She  then  took  the  linen  and  cut  it  up  and  made 
shirts  both  for  the  son  and  herself.  The  rest  she 
went  to  the  town  with  and  sold  and  got  money  for. 
Now  they  both  lived  happy  and  comfortable  for 
awhile.  But  when  it  all  came  to  an  end  the  woman 
had  no  more  food  in  the  house,  and  so  she  said  to 
her  son  that  now  he  must  really  begin  and  go  to 
work  and  make  himself  useful,  else  there  was  noth 
ing  left  but  starvation  for  both  of  them. 

But  the  lad  had  a  greater  mind  to  go  to  old 
Mother  Corner's  and  woo  her  daughter.  "Well,  the 
woman  thought  that  was  a  good  thing,  for  he  was 
now  better  dressed  and  did  not  look  so  bad  after  all. 
So  she  dressed  and  tidied  him  the  best  she  could, 
and  he  brought  out  his  new  shoes  and  polished  them 
until  they  were  so  bright  that  he  could  see  himself 
in  them.  After  that  he  set  out  and  it  all  happened 
as  before. 


2G4         FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE  FAR   NORTH. 

When  he  came  outside  the  sun  shone  so  warm 
and  bright,  but  it  had  rained  during  the  night  and 
the  ground  was  soft  and  muddy,  and  the  moors 
were  filled  with  puddles. 

The  lad  took  the  shortest  way  across  the  moors 
to  old  Mother  Corner,  and  ran  and  sang  as  he 
always  did.  He  went  by  a  different  path  this  time ; 
but  just  as  he  was  running  and  jumping  along  he 
came  to  the  bridge  of  logs  across  the  marshy  bit  of 
the  path,  and  from  this  bridge  he  was  going  to 
jump  across  a  puddle  on  to  a  tussock,  so  as  not  to 
dirty  his  boots.  But  just  as  he  put  his  foot  on  the 
tussock — plump !  down  he  went,  and  did  not  stop 
till  he  found  himself  in  a  nast}^,  dark  hole.  At  first 
he  saw  nothing,  but  when  he  had  been  there  awhile 
he  caught  sight  of  a  rat,  who  widdled-waddled 
about  with  a  bunch  of  keys  on  her  tail. 

"Are  you  there,  my  dear?"  said  the  rat.  "Wel 
come  again !  It  was  kind  of  you  to  come  and  see 
me  so  soon.  I  know  you  are  quite  impatient,  but 
you  must  really  wait  awhile ;  for  there  is  some 
thing  still  wanting  for  my  dowry.  But  when  you 
come  again  next  time  everything  shall  be  ready." 

When  she  had  said  this,  she  brought  out  many 
kinds  of  dainty  bits  in  egg-shells,  such  as  rats  like 
to  eat ;  but  the  lad  thought  they  looked  like 
leavings,  and  he  said  he  had  no  appetite.  "  I  only 
wish  I  were  well  out  of  this,"  he  thought,  but  he 
said  nothing. 

After  awhile  the  rat  said  : 

"  I  suppose  you  want  to  be  off  home  again  !     I'll 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        265 

hurry  on  with  the  wedding  as  quickly  as  I  can,  but 
this  time  you  must  take  this  woolen  yarn  with  you, 
and  when  you  get  above  ground  you  must  not  look 
back,  but  go  straight  home ;  and  on  the  way  you 
must  not  say  anything  but  c  Short  in  front  and  long 
behind.' '  And  then  she  gave  the  woolen  yarn  into 
his  hand. 

"  Heaven  be  praised  that  I  am  out  of  it !"  said 
the  lad  to  himself;  "I  shall  never  go  there  again." 
And  so  he  sang  and  leaped  as  usual.  He  did  not 
think  any  more  about  the  rathole,  but  the  tune 
had  got  into  his  head,  and  he  went  on  singing : 

"  Short  in  front  and  long  behind! 
Short  in  front  and  long  behind!" 

And  this  he  kept  up  all  the  way  home.  When  he 
got  outside  the  door  he  happened  to  look  round, 
and  there  lay  the  finest  cloth,  many  hundreds  of 
yards  long,  nearly  a  mile  in  all,  and  so  fine  that  the 
smartest  man  in  town  did  not  have  finer  cloth  in 
his  coat. 

"  Mother,  mother !  come  out,  come  out !"  cried 
the  lad. 

The  woman  came  to  the  door,  held  up  her  hands 
in  astonishment,  and  nearly  fainted  with  joy  when 
she  saw  all  the  beautiful  cloth.  He  then  had  to 
tell  her  how  he  had  got  it,  and  how  it  had  happened 
from  first  to  last. 

They  were  then  well  off,  as  you  may  imagine. 
The  boy  got  fine  new  clothes  and  the  woman  went 


2GG        FAIRY   TALES   FROM    THE  FAR  NORTH. 

to  town  and  sold  the  cloth,  piece  by  piece,  and  got 
a  lot  of  money.  So  she  smartened  up  the  house 
and  became  so  grand  in  her  old  days  that  she  might 
have  been  a  great  dame.  They  were  both  happy 
and  comfortable,  but  at  last  that  money  also  came 
to  an  end,  and  one  day  when  the  woman  had  no 
more  food  in  the  house,  she  said  to  her  son  that  he 
would  now  really  have  to  go  to  work  to  make  him 
self  useful,  else  it  would  come  to  starvation  with 
both  of  them. 

But  the  lad  thought  it  would  be  better  to  go  to 
old  Mother  Corner's  and  woo  her  daughter.  The 
woman  thought  the  same,  for  the  lad  had  now  fine, 
new  clothes  and  looked  so  well  that  she  thought  it 
quite  impossible  such  a  fine  lad  should  get  "  no." 

So  she  dressed  him  and  tidied  him  as  well  as  she 
could  and  he  brought  out  his  new  boots  and  polished 
them  till  he  could  see  himself  in  them,  and  after 
that  he  set  out. 

This  time  he  did  not  take  the  shortest  cut,  but 
went  a  long  way  round,  for  he  did  not  want  to  get 
down  to  the  rat  any  more,  he  was  so  tired  of  all  the 
widdling-waddling  and  the  eternal  talk  about  the 
wedding.  The  weather  and  the  roads  were  just  the 
same  as  on  the  first  and  second  occasion.  The  sun 
shone  and  the  water  glistened  in  the  puddles  and 
the  lad  ran  and  sang,  as  he  always  did ;  but  as  he 
was  running  and  jumping  along  he  found  himself 
all  at  once  on  the  same  bridge  on  the  moor  again. 
From  this  he  jumped  across  a  puddle  on  to  a  tus 
sock  so  as  not  to  soil  his  boots — plump !  and  down 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE  FAR  NORTH.        267 

the  lad  went  and  he  did  not  stop  till  he  found  him 
self  in  the  same  nasty,  dark  hole  again.  At  first 
he  was  glad,  for  he  did  not  see  anything,  but  when 
he  had  been  there  awhile  he  caught  a  glimpse  of 
the  ugly  rat — the  nasty  thing — with  a  bunch  of 
keys  on  her  tail. 

"  Good-day,  my  dear !"  said  the  rat ;  "  welcome 
again !  I  see  you  cannot  live  long  without  me ! 
I'm  glad  of  that !  But  everything  is  now  ready  for 
the  wedding  and  we  will  set  out  for  church  at 
once." 

We'll  see  about  that,  thought  the  lad,  but  he  said 
nothing.  The  rat  then  gave  a  squeak  and  a  swarm 
of  rats  and  mice  came  rushing  in  from  all  corners, 
and  six  big  rats  came  harnessed  to  a  frying-pan  ; 
two  mice  got  up  behind  as  footmen  and  two  sat  in 
front  driving.  Some  of  them  got  into  the  pan, 
while  the  rat  with  the  bunch  of  keys  took  her  place 
in  the  middle  of  them.  She  then  said  to  the  lad : 

u  The  road  is  a  little  narrow  here,  so  you  had 
better  walk  by  the  side  of  the  carriage,  my  dear, 
till  the  road  becomes  wider,  and  then  you  can  sit 
up  beside  me." 

"  How  grand  we  want  to  be  !"  thought  the  lad. 
"  I  only  wish  I  was  well  out  of  this,  and  I  would 
run  away  from  the  whole  crew,"  he  thought;  but 
he  said  nothing.  He  followed  as  best  he  could. 
Sometimes  he  had  to  creep  and  sometimes  he  had 
to  stoop,  for  the  passage  was  often  very  low  and 
narrow  ;  but  when  it  became  broader  he  went  on 
in  front  and  looked  around  to  see  how  he  could 
best  manage  to  give  them  the  slip. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM  THE   FAR  NORTH. 

All  at  once  he  heard  a, clear  and  beautiful  voice 
behind  him : 

"  Now  the  road  is  good !  Come,  my  dear,  and 
get  into  the  carriage !" 

The  lad  turned  quickly  round  and  nearly  lost  his 
wits,  for  there  stood  the  most  splendid  carriage 
with  six  white  horses;  and  in  the  carriage  sat  a 
maiden  as  fair  and  beautiful  as  the  sun,  and  around 
her  sat  other  damsels  as  handsome  and  bright  as 
the  stars.  It  was  a  princess  and  her  playmates  who 
had  been  enchanted.  But  now  they  were  freed, 
because  he  had  gone  down  to  them  and  never  gain 
said  them  in  anything. 

"  Come  now,"  said  the  princess,  and  the  lad  then 
stepped  into  the  carriage  and  drove  to  church  with 
her.  On  their  way  from  church  the  princess  said ; 

"We  will  now  drive  to  my  place  first  and  then 
we  will  send  for  your  mother." 

"  That  was  all  very  well,"  thought  the  lad ;  he 
said  nothing  this  time  either,  but  he  thought  it 
would  be  better  to  go  home  to  his  mother  than 
down  in  the  nasty  rathole.  But  all  at  once  they 
came  to  a  grand  castle,  where  they  drove  in ;  and 
that  was  their  home.  A  splendid  carriage  with  six 
horses  was  then  sent  to  fetch  the  lad's  mother,  and 
when  it  came  back  the  wedding  festivities  began. 
They  lasted  fourteen  days,  and  perhaps  they  are 
still  going  on.  If  we  make  haste  we  may  also  be 
in  time  to  drink  with  the  bridegroom  and  to  dance 
with  the  bride. 


THE  PK1NCESS  WHOM  NOBODY  COULD 
SILENCE. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  king,  and  he  had 
a  daughter  who  would  always  have  the  last  word ; 
she  was  so  perverse  and  contrary  in  her  speech  that 
no  one  could  silence  her.  So  the  king  therefore 
promised  that  he  who  could  outwit  her  should  have 
the  princess  in  marriage  and  half  the  kingdom 
besides.  There  were  plenty  of  those  who  wanted 
to  try,  I  can  assure  you ;  for  it  isn't  every  day  that 
a  princess  and  half  a  kingdom  are  to  be  had. 

The  gate  to  the  palace  hardly  ever  stood,  still. 
The  suitors  came  in  swarins  and  flocks  from  east 
and  west,  both  riding  and  walking.  But  there  was 
no  one  who  could  silence  the  princess.  At  last  the 
king  announced  that  those  who  tried  and  did  not 
succeed  should  be  branded  on  both  ears  with  a 
large  iron  ;  he  would  not  have  all  this  running  about 
the  palace  for  nothing. 

So  there  were  three  brothers  who  had  also  heard 
about  the  princess,  and  as  they  were  rather  badly 
off  at  home,  they  thought  they  would  try  their  luck 
and  see  if  they  could  win  the  princess  and  half  the 
kingdom.  They  were  good  friends  and  so  they 
agreed  to  set  out  together. 

When  they  had  got  a  bit  on  the  way,  AshiepattJ.e 
found  a  dead  magpie. 


f 

270        FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH. 

"  I  have  found  something !  I  have  found  some 
thing  !"  cried  he. 

"  What  have  you  found  ?"  asked  the  brothers. 

"  I  Lave  found  a  dead  magpie,"  said  he. 

"  Faugh !  throw  it  away ;  what  can  you  do  with 
that  ?"  said  the  other  two,  who  always  believed  they 
were  the  wisest. 

"  Oh,  I've  nothing  else  to  do.  I  can  easily  carry 
it,"  said  Ashiepattle. 

When  they  had  gone  on  a  bit  further  Ashiepattle 
found  an  old  willow  twig,  which  he  picked  up. 

"  I  have  found  something !  I  have  found  some 
thing  !"  he  cried. 

"What  have  you  found  now  ?"  °^id  the  brothers. 

"  I  have  found  a  willow  twig,"  said  he. 

"  Pooh  !  what  are  you  going  to  do  with  that  ? 
Throw  it  away,"  said  the  two. 

"  I  have  nothing  else  to  do,  I  can  easily  carry  it 
with  me,"  said  Ashiepattle. 

When  they  had  gone  still  further  he  found  a 
broken  saucer,  which  he  also  picked  up. 

"  Here  lads,  I  have  found  something !  I  have 
found  something !"  said  he. 

"  Well,  what  have  you  found  POW  ?"  asked  the 
brothers. 

"  ^  broken  saucer,"  said  he,. 

"  Pshaw !  Is  it  worth  while  dragging  that  along 
with  you  too  ?  Throw  it  away  !"  said  the  brothers. 

"  Oh,  I've  nothing  else  to  do,  I  can  easily  carry  it 
with  me,"  said  Ashiepattle. 

When  they  had  gone  a  little  bit  further  he  found 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.      271 

a  crooked  goat-horn  and  soon  after  he  found  the 
fellow  to  it. 

"  I  have  found  something  !  I  have  found  some 
thing,  lads!"  said  he. 

"  What  have  you  found  now  ?"  said  the  others. 

"Two  goat-horns,"  answered  Ashiepattle. 

"  Ugh  !  Throw  them  away !  What  are  you 
going  to  do  with  them  ?"  said  they. 

"  Oh,  I  have  nothing  else  to  do.  I  can  easily 
carry  them  with  me,"  said  Ashiepattle.  -t 

In  a  little  while  he  found  a  wedge. 

"  I  say,  lads,  I  have  found  something !  I  have 
found  something !"  he  cried. 

"  You  are  t .  ^rlastingly  finding  something !  What 
have  you  found  now  ?"  asked  the  two  eldest. 

"  I  have  found  a  wedge,"  he  answered. 

"  Oh,  throw  it  away  !  What  are  you  going  to  do 
with  it?"  said  they. 

"  Oh,  1  have  nothing  else  to  do.  I  can  easily 
carry  it  with  me,"  said  Ashiepattle. 

As  he  went  across  the  king's  fields,  which  had 
keen  freshly  manured,  he  stooped  down  and  took 
up  an  old  boot-sole. 

"  Hullc,  lads !  I  have  found  something,  I  have 
found  something !"  said  he. 

u  Heaven  grant  you  may  find  a  little  sense  before 
you  get  to  the  palace !"  said  the  two.  "  What  is  it 
you  have  found  now  ?" 

"  An  old  boot-sole,"  said  he. 

"  Is  that  anything  worth  picking  up  ?  Throw  it 
away !  What  are  you  going  to  do  with  it  ?"  said 
the  brothers. 


272        FAIRY.  TALES  FROM  THF    FAR   NORTH. 

"  Oh,  I  have  nothing  else  to  do.  I  can  easily 
carry  it  with  me,  and — who  knows? — it  "may  help 
me  to  win  the  princess  and  half  the  kingdom,"  said 
Ashiepattle. 

"  Yes,  you  look  a  likely  one,  don't  you  ?"  said  the 
other  two.  So  they  went  in  to  the  princess,  the 
eldest  first. 

"  Good-day  !"  said  he. 

"Good-day  to  you!"  answered  she,  with  a  shrug. 

"  It's  terribly  hot  here,"  said  he. 

"  It's  hotter  in  the  fie^,"  said  the  princess.  The 
branding  iron  was  lying  waiting  in  the  fire. 

When  he  saw  this  he  was  struck  speechless^  and 
so  it  was  all.  over  with  him. 

The  second  brother  fared  no  better. 

"  Good-day  !"  said  he. 

"  Good-day  to  you,"  said  she,  with  a  wriggle. 

"  It's  terribly  hot  here !"  said  he. 

"  It's  hotter  in  the  fire,"  said  she.  With  that  he 
lost  both  speech  and  wits,  and  so  the  iron  had  to  be 
brought  out. 

Then  came  Ashiepattle's  turn. 

"  Good-day  !"  said  he. 

"  Good-day  to  you !"  said  she,  with  a  shrug  and  a 
wriggle. 

"It  is  very  nice  and  warm  here!"  said  Ashie 
pattle. 

"It's  warmer-  in  the  fire/'  she  answered.  She 
was  in  no  better  humor  now  she  pra  bl  e  third 
suitor. 

"Then  there's  a  chance  for  me  to  roasi  ;  ly  mag 
pie  on  it,"  said  he,  bringing  it  out. 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR  NORTH.        273 

"  I'm  afraid  it  will  sputter,"  said  the  princess. 

"  No  fear  of  that !  I'll  tie  this  willow  twig  round 
it,"  said  the  lad. 

"  You  can't  tie  it  tight  enough,"  said  she. 

''Then  I'll  drive  in  a  wedge,"  said  the  lad,  and 
brought  out  the  wedge. 

"The  fat  will  be  running  off  it,"  said  the  princess. 

"  Then  I'll  hold  this  under  it,"  said  the  lad,  and 
showed  her  the  broken  saucer. 

"  You  are  so  crooked  in  your  speech,"  said  the 
princess. 

"  No,  I  am  not  crooked,"  answered  the  lad  ;  "  but 
this  is  crooked ;"  and  he  brought  out  one  of  the 
goat-horns. 

"  Well,  I've  never  seen  the  like !"  cried  the  prin 
cess. 

"  Here  you  see  the  like,"  said  he,  and  brought 
out  the  other  horn. 

"  It  seems  you  have  come  here  to  wear  out  my 
soul !"  she  said. 

"  No,  I  have  not  come  here  to  wear  out  your 
soul,  for  I  have  one  here  which  is  already  worn  out," 
answered  the  lad,  and  brought  out  the  old  boot-sole. 

The  princess  was  so  dumfounded  at  this  that 
she  was  completely  silenced. 

"  Now  you  are  mine !"  said  Ashiepattle,  and  so  he 
got  her  and  half  the  kingdom  into  the  bargain. 


FAEMEE  WEATHEEBEAED. 

THERE  were  once  upon  a  time  a  man  and  a  woman, 
who  had  an  only  son,  and  he  was  called  Hans.  The 
woman  thought  that  he  ought  to  go  out  and  look 
for  work,  and  told  her  husband  to  go  with  him. 
"  You  must  find  him  such  a  good  place  that  he  can 
become  master  of  all  masters,"  she  said,  and  so  she 
put  some  food  and  a  roll  of  tobacco  in  a  bag  for 
them. 

"Well,  they  went  to  many  masters,  but  all  replied 
that  they  might  make  the  lad  as  clever  as  they  were 
themselves,  but  they  could  not  make  him  cleverer. 
When  the  man  came  home  to  his  wife  with  this 
answer  she  said :  "  Well,  I  don't  care  what  you  do 
with  him,  but  this  I  tell  you,  that  you  will  have  to 
make  him  master  over  all  masters."  So  she  put 
some  food  and  a  roll  of  tobacco  in  a  bag,  and  the 
man  and  the  son  had  to  set  out  again. 

When  they  had  gone  a  bit  on  the  way  they  came 
out)  upon  the  ice,  where  they  met  a  man  who*  was 
driving  a  black  horse. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?"  said  he. 

"  I'm  going  to  get  my  son  apprenticed  to  some 
one  who  can  teach  him  well ;  for  my  wife  comes  of 
such  good  people  that  she  wants  him  to  become 
master  of  all  masters." 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        275 

"  That's  lucky,"  said  the  man  who  was  driving ; 
"  I  am  the  very  man  for  that,  and  I  am  just  looking 
for  such  an  apprentice.  Get  up  behind,"  he  said  to 
the  boy,  and  off  they  went  through  the  air. 

"  Wait  a  bit !"  shouted  the  lad's  father.  "  I  ought 
to  know  what's  your  name  and  where  you  live," 
said  he. 

"  Oh,  I'm  at  home  both  North  and  South  and 
East  and  West,  and  I  am  called  Farmer  Weather- 
beard,"  said  the  master.  "  In  a  year  you  can  come 
back  again  and  I  will  tell  you  if  he's  good  for  any 
thing,"  And  off  they  went,  and  were  lost  to  sight. 

When  the  year  was  out  the  man  came  to  hear 
about  his  son.  "  You  can't  finish  him  in  a  year,  you 
know,"  said  the  master.  "  As  yet  he  has  only  found 
his  legs,  so  to  speak."  They  then  agreed  that 
Farmer  Weatherbeard  should  keep  him  another 
year,  and  teach  him  everything,  and  then  the  man 
was  to  come  back  for  him.  When  the  year  was 
over  they  met  again  at  the  same  place. 

"  Have  you  finished  with  him  now  ?"  asked  the 
father. 

"  Yes,  he's  my  master  now,  but  you  will  never 
see  him  again,"  said  Farmer  Weatherbeard ;  and 
before  the  man  knew  what  had  become  of  them 
they  were  gone,  both  the  farmer  and  the  lad. 

When  the  man  caAe  home  the  woman  asked  if 
the  son  was  not  with  him,  or  what  had  become  of 
him. 

"  Oh,  goodness  knows  what  became  of  him,"  said 
the  man;  "he  went  off  through  the  air."  And  so 


- 


276        FAIRY   TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

he  told  her  what  had  happened.  When  the  woman 
heard  that  her  husband  did  not  know  where  her  son 
was  she  sent  him  off  again. 

"  You  must  find  the  lad,  even  if  you  have  to  go  to" 
Old  Nick  for  him !"  said  she,  and  gave  him  a  bag  of/ 
food  and  a  roll  of  tobacco. 

"  When  he  had  got  a  bit  on  the  way  he  came  to  a 
large  forest,  and  it  took  him  the  whole  of  the  day  to 
get  through  it ;  and  as  it  grew  dark  he  saw  a  brig 'at 
light  and  went  toward  it.  After  a  long  while^ne 
came  to  a  little  cottage  under  a  cliff,  ajnd  outside  it 
a  woman  was  standing,  drawing  water  from  the 
well  with  her  nose,  it  was  so  long. 

"  Good-evening,  mother !" 

"  Good-evening  to  you,"  said  the  \>  oman ;  "  no  one 
has  called  me  mother  for  a  hundred  years." 

"  Can  I  get  lodgings  here  to-night  ?"  said  the  man. 

"!N"o,"   said    the    woman.     But    then    the  man 
brought  out  the  roll  of  tobacco,  dried  a  little  of  it 
and  made  some  snuff,  which  he  gave  the  woman.  • 
She  was  so  glad  that  she  began  to  dance,  and  then 
she  said  that  he  might  stop  the  night. 

All  at  once  he  asked  after  Farmer  Weatherbeard. 
She  knew  nothing  about  him,  she  said,  but  she  ruled 
over  all  four-footed  animals,  and  perhaps  some  of 
them  might  know  something  about  him.  She  then 
called  them  together  with  a  whistle  and  questioned 
them,  but  there  was  not  one  who  knew  anything 
about  Farmer  Weatherbeard. 

"  Well,  we  are  three  sisters,"  said  the  woman ; 
"  perhaps  one  of  the  other  two  knows  where  he  is. 


The  woman  was  raking  the  fire  with  her  nose,  it  was  so  long.—Page  277. 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.  277 

I'll  lend  you  my  carriage  so  that  you  can  get  there 
to-night,  but  it  is  three  hundred  miles  to  the  nearest 
of  them." 

The  man  set  out  and  got  there  in  the  evening. 
When  he  arrived  there  also  was  a  woman  standing 
drawing  water  from  the  well  with  her  nose. 

"  Good-evening,  mother !"  said  the  man. 

"Good-evening  to  you,"  said  the  woman;  "no 
one  has  called  me  mother  for  a  hundred  years,"  said 
she. 

"  Can  I  get  lodgings  here  to-night  ?"  said  the  man. 

"  No,"  said  the  woman. 

But  then  the  man  brought  out  the  roll  of  tobacco, 
dried  a  little  of  it  and  made  some  snuff,  which  he 
gave  the  woman  on  the  back  of  her  hand.  She  was 
so  pleased  at  this  that  she  began  to  dance,  and  then 
she  said  he  might  stop  there  the  night. 

All  at  once  he  asked  about  Farmer  Weatherbeard. 
She  did  not  know  anything  about  him,  but  she  ruled 
over  all  the  fishes,  she  said,  and  perhaps  some  of 
them  might  know  something  about  him.  She  then 
called  them  together  with  a  whistle  she  had,  and 
questioned  them  all,  but  there  was  not  one  who 
knew  anything  about  Farmer  Weatherbeard. 

"  Well,  I  have  another  sister ;  perhaps  she  may 
know  something  about  him ;  she  lives  six  hundred 
miles  from  here,  but  you  can  have  my  carriage  and 
get  there  before  night  sets  in." 

The  man  set  out  and  got  there  in  the  evening,  and 
found  a  woman  raking  the  fire  with  her  nose,  it  was 
so  long. 


278        FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"  Good-evening,  mother !" 

"Good-evening  to  you,"  said  the  woman;  "no 
one  has  called  me  mother  for  a  hundred  years." 

"  Can  I  get  lodgings  here  to-night  ?"  said  the  man. 

"No,"' said  the  woman. 

But  then  the  man  brought  out  the  tobacco  roll 
again  and  began  to  make  some  snuff.  He  gave  the 
woman  so  much  that  it  covered  the  whole  of  the 
back  of  her  hand.  She  was  so  pleased  at  this  that 
she  began  to  dance,  and  then  she  said  he  might  stop 
the  night. 

All  at  once  he  asked  about  Farmer  "Weather beard. 
She  did  not  know  anything  about  him,  she  said ; 
but  she  ruled  over  all  the  birds  and  called  them  all 
together  with  her  whistle.  When  she  had  ques 
tioned  them  all  she  missed  the  eagle,  but  in  a  little 
while  he  came;  and  when  she  asked  him  he  said  he 
had  come  straight  from  Farmer  Weatherboard.  The 
woman  then  told  him  that  he  must  show  the  man 
the  way  there.  But  first  the  eagle  wanted  some 
thing  to  eat,  and  next  he  wanted  to  rest  till  the  fol 
lowing  day,  for  he  was  so  tired  after  the  long  way 
he  had 'come  that  he  could  scarcely  rise  from  the 
ground.  | 

When  the  eagle  had  finished  his  meal  and  taken 
a  rest  the  woman  plucked  a  feather  from  his  tail  and 
put  the  man  in  its  place,  and  away  flew  the  eagle 
with  him ;  but  they  did  not  get  to  Farmer  Weather- 
beard  before  midnight.  When  they  arrived  there 
the  eagle  said : 

"  There  are  bones  and  carcasses  lying  about  out- 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.  279 

side  the  door,  but  you  must  not  mind  them.  All  the 
people  in  the  house  sleep  so  soundly  that  they  are 
hard  to  wake ;  you  must  go  straight  to  the  table 
drawer  and  take  three  bits  of  bread  out  of  it,  and  if 
you  hear  some  one  snoring  you  must  pull  three 
feathers  out  of  his  head ;  that  won't  wake  him  up." 

The  man  did  as  he  was  told,  and  when  he  had  got 
the  bits  of  bread  he  pulled  out  first  one  feather. 

"  Oh !"  cried  Farmer  Weatherbeard. 

Then  the  man  pulled  out  one  more  and  Farmer 
Weatherbeard  shouted  "  Oh"  again  ;  but  when  he 
he  pulled  out  the  third  one,  Farmer  Weatherbeard 
shrieked  so  loudly  that  the  man  thought  both  the 
walls  and  the  roof  would  have  burst  asunder,  but 
the  farmer  went  on  sleeping  just  the  same.  The 
eagle  then  told  the  man  what  he  was  to  do  next ;  so 
he  went  to  the  door  of  the  cowhouse,  and  there  he 
stumbled  against  a  big  stone,  which  he  took  with 
him,  and  under  the  stone  lay  three  chips  of  wood, 
which  he  also  took  with  him.  He  then  knocked  at 
the  door  of  the  cowhouse  and  it  opened  at  once. 
He  dropped  the  three  bits  of  bread,  and  a  hare 
came  running  out  and  ate  them.  He  then  caught 
the  hare  and  took  it  with  him. 

The  eagle  asked  him  to  pluck  three  feathers  out 
of  his  tail  and  place  the  hare,  the  stone,  the  chips 
of  wood  and  himself  instead,  and  he  would  then  fly 
home  with  them.  When  the  eagle  had  flown  a  longj 
long  way,  he  settled  down  on  a  stone. 
.  "  Do  you  see  anything  ?"  said  he. 

"Yes,  I  see  a  flock  of  crows  flying  toward  us/' 
i  aid  the  man. 


280       FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH. 

"We  had  better  get  on  a  bit  then,"  said  the 
eagle,  and  on  he  flew.  In  a  while  he  asked  again  : 

"  Do  you  see  anything  now  ?" 

"  Yes,  the  crows  are  close  upon  us  again,"  said 
the  man. 

"  Drop  the  three  feathers  you  plucked  from  his 
head,"  said  the  eagle. 

The  man  did  so,  and  the  moment  he  dropped 
them  the  feathers  became  a  fl6ck  of  ravens,  which 
chased  the  crows  home  again.  The  eagle  then  flew 
far  away  with  the  man.  At  last  it  settled  down  on 
a  stone  to  rest. 

"  Do  you  see  anything?"  he  said. 

"I'm  not  sure,"  said  the  man,  "but  I  think  I  see 
something  coming  far  away." 

"  We  had  better  get  on  a  bit  then,"  said  the  eagle. 

"Do  you  see  an}Tthing  now?"  he  said  in  a  while. 

"  Yes,  now  he  is  close  upon  us,"  said  the  man. 

"  You  must  drop  the  chips  which  you  took  from 
under  the  stone  near  the  cowhouse  door,"  said  the 
eagle. 

The  man  did  so,  and  the  same  moment  he  dropped 
them  there  grew  up  a  great,  thick  forest ;  so  Farmer 
Weatherboard  had  to  go  home  for  axes  to  cut  his 
way  through. 

The  eagle  then  flew  on  again  a  long  way,  till  he 
became  tired  arid  settled  down  in  a  fir  tree. 

"  Do  you  see  anything?"  said  he. 

"  Well,  I'm  not  sure  about  it,"  said  the  man,  "  but 
I  think  I  catch  a  glimpse  of  something  far  away." 

"  We  had  better  get  on  a  bit  then,"  said  the 
eagle  ;  and  so  he  flew  on  again. 


You  must  drop  the  stone  you  took  from  the  cow-house  door,"  said  the  eagle. 
Page  281. 


FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        281 

"  Do  you  see  anything  now  ?"  he  said  in  a  while, 

"  Yes,  now  he  is  close  upon  us." 

"  You  must  drop  the  stone  you  took  from  the 
cowhouse  door,"  said  the  eagle. 

The  man  did  so,  and  it  became  a  big,  lofty  moun- 
lain,  which  Farmer  Weatherbeard  had  to  break 
jhis  way  through.  But  when  he  had  got  halfway 
through  the  mountain  he  broke  one  of  his  legs,  so 
that  he  had  to  go  home  and  get  it  healed. 

In  the  meantime  the  eagle  flew  home  with  the 
man  and  the  hare,  and  when  they  got  there  the  man 
went  to  the  churchyard  and  put  some  consecrated 
soil  on  the  hare,  and  it  changed  into  Hans,  his  own 
fcon. 

When  the  time  came  round  for  the  fair,  the  lad 
turned  himself  into  a  cream-colored  horse,  and 
asked  his  father  to  take  him  with  him  to  the  fair. 

"  If  some  one  comes  up  to  you  and  wants  to  buy 
pe,  you  must  say  you  want  a  hundred  dollars  for 
me ;  but  you  must  not  forget  to  take  off  the  halter, 
Otherwise  I  shall  never  be  able  to  get  away  from 
Farmer  Weatherbeard ;  for  it  is  he  who  will  come 
^nd  want  to  buy  me,"  said  the  lad. 

And  so  it  turned  out.  A  horse  dealer  carne  up 
and  wanted  to  buy  the  horse  and  the  man  got  his 
hundred  dollars  for  it.  But  when  the  bargain  was 
made  and  Hans'  father  had  got  the  money,  the 
horse-dealer  wanted  to  keep  the  halter  also. 

"  No,  there  was  nothing  about  that  in  our  agree 
ment,"  said  the  man.  "  You  cannot  have  the  halter, 
pr  I  have  more  horses  to  bring  to  town." 


282        FAIRY   TALES   FROM   THE    FAR   NORTH. 


So  they  went  each  his  way.  But  they  had  not 
got  far  before  Hans  resumed  his  own  shape,  and 
when  the  man  came  home  he  found  the  son  sitting 
by  the  stove. 

The  second  day  he  turned  himself  into  a  brown 
horse  and  told  his  father  to  take  him  with  him  to 
the  fair. 

"  If  some  one  comes  up  to  you  and  wants  to  buy 
me,  you  must  say  you  want  two  hundred  dollars  for 
me ;  for  he  will  pay  you  that  and  give  you  a  drink 
besides ;  but  whatever  you  drink  or  whatever  you 
do  you  must  not  forget  to  take  the  halter  off  me, 
else  you  will  not  see  me  again,"  said  Hans. 

It  turned  out  just  as  before.  The  man  got  two 
hundred  dollars  for  the  horse  and  a  drink  into  the 
bargain ;  and  when  they  parted  it  was  as  much  as 
the  man  could  do  to  remember  to  take  off  the 
halter.  But  they  had  not  got  far  on  the  road  before 
the  lad  resumed  his  own  shape,  and  when  the  man 
came  home  Hans  was  already  sitting  by  the  stove. 

The  third  day  the  same  thing  happened  again. 
The  lad  turned  himself  into  a  big,  black  horse  and 
told  his  father  that  some  one  would  come  up  to  him 
and  offer  him  three  hundred  dollars  and  treat  him 
freely  to  drink ;  but  whatever  he  did  or  however 
much  he  drank  he  must  not  forget  to  take  off  the 
halter,  otherwise  he  would  never  get  away  from 
Farmer  Weatherboard  in  his  life. 

No,  he  would  not  forget  that,  said  the  man. 
"When  he  came  to  the  fair  he  got  the  three  hundred 
dollars,  but  Farmer  Weatherbeard  treated  him  to  so 


FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH.        283 

much  drink  that  he  forgot  to  take  off  the  halter  and 
Farmer  Weatherbeard  set  off  with  the  horse. 

When  he  had  got  a  bit  on  the  way  he  went  into  a 
place  to  get  some  more  drink,  and  so  he  put  a  barrel 
of  red-hot  nails  under  the  horse's  nose  and  a  trough 
of  oats  under  his  tail,  hung  the  halter  across  a 
hurdle  and  went  in  to  the  innkeeper.  The  horse 
stood  there  stamping  and  kicking  and  snorting  and 
scenting  the  air.  A  girl  then  came  by,  who  took 
pity  on  him. 

"  Poor  creature !  What  sort  of  a  master  have  you 
got,  who  can  treat  you  in  this  way  ?"  said  she,  and 
pushed  the  halter  off  the  hurdle  so  that  the  horse 
could  turn  round  and  eat  the  oats. 

"I  am  his  master!"  shouted  Farmer  Weather- 
beard,  who  came  rushing  out  through  the  door.  But 
the  horse  had  already  shaken  off  the  halter  and 
thrown  himself  into  the  horse  pond,  where  he 
changed  himself  into  a  little  fish. 

Farmer  Weatherbeard  rushed  after  him  and 
changed  himself  into  a  big  pike.  Hans  then  turned 
himself  into  a  pigeon  and  Farmer  Weatherbeard 
changed  into  a  hawk  and  set  off  after  the  pigeon 
At  that  moment  a  princess  was  standing  at  a  win 
dow  in  the  palace  and  watched  this  struggle. 

"  If  you  knew  as  much  as  I  do  you  would  come  in 
through  the  window  to  me,"  said  the  princess  to  the 
pigeon. 

The  pigeon  flew  in  through  the  window  and  then 
changed  into  Hans,  who  told  her  what  had  hap 
pened. 


284       FAIRY  TALES  FROM  THE  FAR  NORTH, 

"  Change  yourself  into  a  gold  ring  and  put  your ! 
self  on  my  finger,"  said  she. 

"No,  that  is  no  use,"  said  Hans,  "for  Farmer 
Weatherboard  will  then  make  the  king  ill;  and 
there  is  no  one  who  can  make  him  well  till  Farmer 
Weatherboard  comes  to  cure  him,  and  he  will  ask 
for  the  gold  ring  as  payment. 

"  I  will  say  it  is  my  mother's  and  that  I  will  not 
part  with  it  for  anything,"  said  the  princess. 

So  Hans  changed  himself  into  a  gold  ring  and 
placed  himself  on  the  princess'  finger,  and  there 
Farmer  Weatherboard  could  not  get  hold  of  him. 

But  it  happened  just  as  the  lad  had  said.  The 
king  became  ill  and  there  was  no  doctor  who  could 
cure  him  till  Farmer  Weatherboard  came,  and  he 
wanted  the  ring  on  the  princess'  finger  for  his  fee. 

The  king  then  sent  to  the  princess  for  the  ring, 
but  she  would  not  part  with  it,  she  said,  for  it  had 
been  left  her  by  her  mother.  When  the  king  heard 
this  he  became  angry  and  said  he  would  have  the 
ring,  no  matter  who  had  left  it  her, 

"  Well,  it  is  no  use  getting  angry,"  said  the  prin 
cess,  "  for  I  cannot  get  it  off  my  finger.  If  you  want 
the  ring  you  must  take  the  finger  as  well." 

"  I  will  help  you  and  I  shall  soon  get  the  ring  off," 
said  Farmer  Weatherboard. 

"  No,  thank  you !  I  will  try  myself,"  said  the 
princess,  and  went  to  the  hearth  and  put  some  ashes 
on  it.  The  ring  then  slipped  off  and  was  lost  in  the 
ashes. 

Farmer  Weatherboard  then  turned  himself  into  a 


FAIRY  TALES   FROM   THE   FAR   NORTH.        285 

cock,  which  scratched  and  rooted  about  in  the 
hearth  after  the  ring  so  that  the  ashes  flew  about 
their  ears.  But  Hans  changed  into  a  fox  and  bit  the 
cock's  head  off,  and  if  the  evil  one  was  in  Farmer 
"Weatherbeard,  it  was  now  all  over^  with  him ! 


THE  END. 


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GENERAL  LIBRARY  -  U.C.  BERKELEY 


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